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ANTONIO  ALLECRI 
DA  CORREGGIO 


riic   Madonna   willt   Si.   Scbasliaii. 


ANTONIO     ALLEGRI 
DA     CORREGGIO 

His  Lift\  his  Friends^  and  his  Time 

BY 

CORRADO    RICCI 


DIRECTOR   OF  THE   ROYAL   GALLERY,    I'ARMji 


FROM    THE    ITALIAN    BY 

FLORENCE  SIMMONDS 


\VITH    37   FULL-PAGE   PLATES 
&    190  TEXT  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NEW     YORK  :      CHAREES     SCRIBNER'S     SONS 

MDCCCXCVI 


Matty  of  the  plates  and  text  illiistratiotis 
ill  this  work  have  been  reproduced  from 
photographs  taken  by  Messrs.  Ad.  Bratiii 
et  Cie.  (Paris),  Anderson  (Rome), 
Alinari  (Florence),  Brogi  (Florence), 
Haitfstiingel  (Munich),  and  Morelli 
(London),  who  have  kindly  given  per- 
mission for  their  reproduction.  The 
pictures  by  Correggio  at  Hampton  Court 
Palace,  and  those  nvned  by  the  Duke 
of  Wellington  and  Lord  Ashburton, 
with  some  others,  have  been  specially 
photographed,  and  are  here  reproduced 
for  the  first  time. 


now   n  the  Palatine  Library  at  Parma.; 


PREFACE 


THE  earliest  biography  of 
Correggio  is  that  in  Vasari's 
Lives,  a  valuable  record,  in 
spite  of  the  admixture  of  fable 
with  its  more  sober  details.  No 
contemporary  of  the  master's  left 
any  account  of  him ;  his  name, 
indeed,  was  never  mentioned  by 
any  writer  of  his  day,  not  even 
by  Ariosto,  who  was  the  friend  and  intimate  of  the  Lords  of  Correggio, 
and  who  enumerates  the  most  famous  painters  of  the  period  in  a  well- 
known  passage  of  his  great  poem.  When  Vasari  collected  his  material, 
he  found  it  already  overlaid  with  legends  and  improbabilities  ;  and 
those  who  are  familiar  with  the  critical  methods  of  his  age  will  not  be 
inclined   to   blame   him  too  severely  for  having  occasionally  bound  up 


^ilGCCGS 


tares  with  his  wheat.  Whatever  the  defects  of  his  biography,  it  was 
undoubtedly  the  means  of  preserving  many  valuable  facts. 

After  Vasari,  no  biographer  devoted  himself  to  any  exhaustive 
study  of  Correggio  until  the  eighteenth  century.  The  steady  growth 
of  an  appreciative  admiration  of  his  work  expressed  itself  in  an  interest 
that  was  technical  and  artistic,  rather  than  personal.  Painters  lauded 
him  and  copied  his  pictures  ;  writers  of  treatises  upon  art,  such  as 
Borghini,  Armenini,  Scannelli,  and  many  others,  expatiated  on  his  style 
and  his  works,  but  were  content  with  what  Vasari  had  told  them  of 
his  life. 

Baldinucci,  indeed,  makes  a  casual  allusion  to  his  history,  but  could 
not  produce  any  further  materials  towards  his  biography  when  it  was 
proposed  to  complete  and  correct  Vasari's  work.  It  is  somewhat  mis- 
leading, however,  to  put  this  forward  as  an  evidence  of  indifference 
to  Correggio's  fame.  Baldinucci's  admiration  for  the  master  is  at- 
tested by  the  following  passage  in  a  letter  of  i6Si:  "1  myself  knew 
an  artist  who  in  his  youth  had  made  copies  from  many  of  Correggio's 
marvellous  works  in  Parma  and  elsewhere,  with  which  drawings  he 
covered  the  walls  of  his  room,  that  they  might  be  a  perpetual  reminder 
to  him  of  the  unique  style  of  that  great  man,  and  open  his  mind  to 
grand  and  novel  conceptions.  " 

Like  Baldinucci,  other  writers  of  artistic  syntheses,  catalogues, 
biographical  dictionaries,  and  encyclopaedias  throughout  the  seventeenth 
and  eighteenth  centuries  contented  themselves  with  Vasari's  account  of 
the;  master.  Even  Mengs,  whose  dissertations  upon  Correggio's  work  are 
so  copious  and  appreciative,  made  no  attempt  to  resolve  the  numerous 
chronological  difficulties  that  beset  him  by  the  help  of  contemporary 
documents,  and  only  lingers  over  the  painter's  biography  when  he  finds 
in  it  some  support  for  a  theory  or  preconception  ot  his  own.  Ratti 
follows  him  obsequiously,  at  times  .ill  but  reproducing  his  very 
words. 

The   first   biography   of  Correggio   marked    by  any  sound  critical 


knowledge  and  evidence  of  original  research,  was  Tiraboschi's  life  in 
the  Bibliotcca  Modenese.  He  examined  and  published  various  un- 
known documents,  harmonising  them,  and  drawing  conclusions  from 
them  with  admirable  simplicity  and  good  sense.  His  work  was  not 
complete,  because  conditions  forbade  such  completeness.  Many 
documents  now  accessible  were  then  buried  in  public  or  private 
archives  ;  many  others  were  jealously  guarded  by  those  erudite  dogs 
in  the  manger  who  propose  to  themselves  a  task  they  never  accomplish, 
and  put  obstacles  in  the  way  of  their  more  practical  and  energetic 
rivals.  Correggio's  works  were  scattered  in  all  directions  ;  of  many 
there  were  no  reproductions  at  all,  while  others  could  be  studied  only 
in  defective  engravings,  which  at  best  gave  an  imperfect  idea  of 
the  design  and  composition. 

Tiraboschi's  study  served  as  a  guide  to  all  who  wrote  of  Correggio 
until  the  appearance  of  Padre  Luigi  Pungileoni's  three  volumes,  which 
showed  an  important  advance  in  research,  and  contained  many  fresh 
details  of  great  interest.  Its  usefulness  is  much  discounted,  however, 
by  its  confused  and  chaotic  arrangement,  a  result  of  the  author's  be- 
wildering method  of  separating  his  narrative  from  the  documents  he 
quotes  or  transcribes.  This  system  led  to  constant  repetitions.  His 
style  is  another  stumbling-block.  It  is  unimaginably  prolix,  slovenly, 
and  artificial — so  artificial  as  to  become  unintelligible  where  there  is 
nothing  to  prevent  the   most  absolute  clarity. 

The  work,  however,  does  not  deserve  all  the  abuse  that  has  been 
heaped  on  it  by  some  who  have  made  free  use  of  the  vast  amount 
of  material  it  contains. 

A  considerable  space  of  time  was  allowed  for  the  fructification  of 
Pungileoni's  researches,  during  which  fresh  material  accumulated  in 
the  shape  of  minor  critical  publications,  and  reproductions  of  the 
master's  works,  notably  those  of  Paolo  Toschi  and  his  pupils,  wlio 
reproduced  the  whole  of  his  frescoes.  A  most  important  contribution 
to  the  literature  of  the  subject  then  appeared.    This  was  Julius  Meyer's 


biography  of  the  EmiHan  painter,  pubHshed  at  Leipzig  in  1871.- 
Meyer  had  carefully  studied  all  the  works  of  his  predecessors  ;  he  had 
examined  the  master's  works,  and  collected  copies,  engravings,  and 
photographs.  He  wrote  incisively,  courageously  denying  Correggio's 
authorship  of  many  works  falsely  ascribed  to  him  for  centuries,  and 
re-establishing  his  claim  to  others  of  which  he  had  been  deprived. 
He  is,  perhaps,  occasionally  over-discursive,  lingering  unduly  over 
matters  of  slight  importance.  The  plan  of  his  book,  too,  is  open 
to  criticism  ;  his  numerous  subdivisions  lead  to  redundancies.  In  his 
historical  catalogue  of  the  master's  wnvrc,  for  instance,  he  is  obliged  to 
repeat  many  statements  already  made  in  the  first  part  of  his  work. 
The  treasury  of  facts  and  deductions  brought  together  by  this  accom- 
plished critic  did  not  deter  Ouirino  Bigi,  Margherita  Albana  Mignaty, 
and  others,  from  a  return  to  the  old  fables.  With  these  they  embel- 
lished their  studies  to  such  an  e.xtent  that  the  new  and  valuable 
material  at  their  command  is  lost  in  a  maze  of  sentimental  rhetoric. 
While  these  writers  amused  themselves  by  blowing  a  series  of  bril- 
liant literary  soap-bubbles,  others  were  engaged  in  the  more  serious 
task  of  examining  types  and  technical  elements,  and  establishing 
Correggio's  affiliation  to  the  school  of  Ferrara,  in  contradiction  to  the 
hitherto  accepted  theory  of  his  Lombard  training.  That  these  fresh 
and  accurate  observers  were  further  inclined  to  deny  the  presence  of 
the  Mantegnesque  elements  so  apparent  in  the  master's  work,  is  one 
of  those  vagaries  only  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  exclusive  spirit  which 
seems  to  animate  all  new  departures.  Criticism  was,  nevertheless,  on 
the  right  track  ;  recognising,  as  we  must  of  necessity,  that  Mantegna's 
works  furnished  Correggio  with  various  motives  and  peculiarities  of 
type,  we  may  at  the  same  time  unreservedly  accept  the  fact  that  he 
grew  up  and  developed  under  Ferrarese  influences.  Giovanni  Morelli 
was  the  first  to  formulate  this  theory,  and  to  him  we  also  owe  the 
discovery  of  several  of  the  master's  juvenile  works.  His  re- 
searches  have  been    followed   \\\)  and    extcndc^d    by   students  such    as 


I'RKFACK  ix 

Richter,  Frizzoni,  VY'iUiiri,  Bode,  Hugo  voii  Tschudi,  ami  man}- 
others. 

We  believe  that  a  new  book  on  Correggio  is  likely  to  be  oi  use  at 
the  stage  of  in(|uiry  now  reached,  and  the  thanks  of  all  stutlents  of 
the  master  are  due  to  the  English  Publisher,  whose  enterprise  and 
artistic  enthusiasm  have  given  us  the  means  of  supplying  this  want. 

It  is  time  to  assign  to  the  painter  his  true  position  in  the  school  to 
which  he  belongs  ;  to  undertake  a  methodical  examination  of  his  intz're, 
correcting  its  chronology,  adding  to  it  those  works  which  recent 
research  has  restored  to  the  master,  and  rejecting  those  which  modern 
criticism  is  unable  to  accept. 

This  book,  which  epitomises  the  results  of  recent  studies,  may  claim 
to  have  undertaken  more  than  this.  The  author  hopes  that  the  unpub- 
lished documents  he  has  examined  have  thrown  light  on  some  obscure 
pages  of  history  ;  that  others,  erroneously  transcribed  by  former  writers, 
and  now  carefully  compared  with  the  originals,  may  have  suggested 
new  deductions  and  observations. 

In  conclusion,  we  maybe  allowed  to  dwell  for  a  moment  on  the  plan 
of  the  present  work.  Each  age  has  its  individual  literary  methods. 
The  old  system  of  biography,  which  divorced  its  heroes  almost  com- 
pletely from  their  surroundings,  caring  nothing  or  little  for  contemporary 
persons  and  events,  the  prevailing  sentiments  of  their  times,  the  moral 
atmosphere  in  which  they  lived  and  worked,  is  completely  exploded. 
The  intellectual  development  of  the  Emilia  during  the  Renaissance  has 
hitherto  been  studied  almost  exclusively  in  those  feverish  manifesta- 
tions of  activity  which  characterised  her  great  social  centres.  It  was 
necessary  in  the  present  instance  to  explore  ground  less  familiar  to  the 
student,  to  examine  into  the  life  of  the  minor  courts  of  that  wide 
territory,  where  the  art  which  reached  its  highest  expression  in 
Correggio  was  born  and  developed  ;  to  learn  something  of  its  artists, 
its  savants,  its  princes,  its  clergy,  its  people,  and  to  study  the  spirit 
by   which    they    were    animated.      This    scrutiny   of  a  society,    always 


essential  to  the  comprehension  of  a  personality  which  has  flourished  in 
its  midst,  was  more  than  ever  necessary  in  the  present  case,  because  of 
the  lack  of  all  the  direct  elements  of  a  psychological  estimate.  Cor- 
reggio's  life  was  a  singularly  uneventfiil  one.  It  was  marked  by  no 
violent  passions,  no  dramatic  episodes,  but  ran  its  appointed  course 
silently  and  peacefully,  in  a  round  of  family  duties  and  artistic  labours. 

A  special  importance  is  given  to  the  present  work  by  the  illustra- 
tions, which  reproduce  the  places  where  the  artist  lived  and  painted, 
the  portraits  of  some  of  those  with  whom  he  came  in  contact,  all  the 
works  by  him  of  which  we  have  any  knowledge,  and  several  examples 
of  those  of  his  scholars.  This  is  the  first  work  on  Allegri  completely 
illustrated  by  photographs  from  originals,  including  his  great  frescoes, 
hitherto  known  only  by  engravings. 

On  these  grounds  we  claim  a  certain  consideration  for  our  book,  in 
the  preparation  of  which  we  have  been  helped  by  the  valuable  sugges- 
tions of  many  friends.  Our  thanks  are  especially  due  to  Dr.  Gustavo 
Frizzoni,  Professor  G.  Piancastelli,  Director  of  the  Borghese  Gallery, 
Professors  Giulio  and  Giuseppe  Ferrari,  and  N.  Campanini  of  Reggio, 
Dr.  Vittorio  Cottafavi,  Professors  Emilio  Mculi  and  Enrico  Cattini 
of  Correggio,  the  Abate  Luigi  Barbieri,  Dr.  Giovanni  Mariotti,  Signor 
Paolo  Baratta,  Prof  Franc.  Brandileone,  and  Signora  Giulia  Caputo  of 
Parma,  Professor  Adolfo  Albertazzi  of  Mantua,  Count  G.  B.  Gandini, 
Signor  Paolo  Maestri  and  Cavaliere  Paolo  Fabrizi  of  Modena,  Dr.  H. 
Weizsacken  of  Frankfort-on-the-Main,  Mr.  .Sidney  Colvin,  etc.,  etc. 

In  our  critical  estimates  we  have  endeavoured  to  avoid  the  pitfalls 

of  fetichism.      If  the   more  fanatical  worshippers  of  Correggio   find   us 

lacking  in  enthusiasm,  and  his  detractors  blame  us  for  our  leniency,  we 

must    content    ourselves    with    the-    knowledge   of   having    sought    the 

golden  mean. 

COKKADO    Ricci. 
J'.\l<M.\,  Oclok-r,   [Sy5. 


(Fresco,  now  in  the  Parma  Callery.) 


CONTENTS 
I 

CORREGGIO    IN    HIS    NATIVE    CITY 
CHAPTER   I 

THE    RENAISSANCE    IN    THE    EMILIA 

The  Revival  of  Culture— The  Horrors  of  the  Middle  Ages— The  Bentivogli 
at  Bologna — The  Boiardi  at  Scandiano — The  Pico  P'amily  at  Mirandola— The 
Pio  Family  at  Carpi — The  Gonzaghi  at  Novellara — The  Torelli  at  Guastalla 
and  at  Montechiarugolo — The  Pallavicini  at  Cortemaggiore — The  Rossi  at 
Parma — Love  of  Art  in  Italv 


CHAPTER  II 
THE    lilRTH   OF   CORREGGIO 
The  Lords  of  Correggio — The  Allegri  Family  and  their  Social  Statu 


24—36 


CHAPTER    III 

CORREGGIO'S    MASTERS 

Artists    in   Correggio — Francesca  of  Brandenburg's   Palace — Lorenzo  Allegri 
and  Francesco  Bianchi-Ferrari — The  Ferrarese  School  of  Painting 


xii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  IV 

CORREGGIO   AT   MANTUA 

PACE 

Influence  of  Mantegna — Imaginary  Journeys  to  Rome  and  Milan — Lorenzo 

(Josta,  Dosso,  and  Lionbruno  — I'ictures  at  Mantua  attributed  to  Correggio     .         53-74 

CHAPTER  V 

THE    TWO    rUlNCESSES 

\'eronica    Gambara— Her    Relations    with   Correggio  and    with    the    Court   of 

Mantua — Isabella  d'Este 75 — 91 

CHAPTER  VI 

COKKEGGIO'S   EARLY    WORKS 

The    Franciscan  Altar-piece  at   Dresden — Juvenile   Pictures   by  Correggio  at 

Milan,  Pavia,  Modena,  Florence,  Munich,  Sigmaringen,  and  London  ....       92—112 

CHAPTER  VII 


Transition  Period — The  "Repose  in  Egyjjt  "  in  the  Uffizi — "La  Zingarella" — 
The  "Madonna  with  the  Two  Children"  in  the  Prado  at  Madrid — The 
"Holy  Family  with  St.  James"  at  Ham])ton  Court — "The  Madonna  of 
Casalmaggiore  " — Lost  Pictures — The  "  Herodias  " — The  "  Triptych  of  the 
Redeemer"— Correggio's  Supposed  Journeys  to  Carpi  and  Novellara — The 
Albinea  Picture — The  "  Young  Man  fleeing  from  the  Ca])tors  of  (Christ  "     .    . 


II 

CORREGGIO    AT    PARMA 
CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    CAMERA    DI    SAN    PAOLO 

Parma— Artists  who  flourished  there  before  Correggio— Correggio  at  Parma — 
The  Convent  of  San  Paolo  and  the  Room  decorated  by  Correggio — Giovanna 
Piacenza  and  Scipione  Montino — "  Diana  " — "  The  Marriage  of  St.  Catherine  " 
— The  "  Madonna  suckling  the  C'hild  "  (known  as  the  "  Madonna  del  Latte") 
■ — The  "Madonna  with  the  P.asket  "  ("Madonna  della  Cesta") — The 
"  Virgin  adoring  the  Infant  Christ  " 143-    183 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE   FRESCOES   IN    SAN    GIOVANNI    EVANGELISTA 

The  Church  and  Monastery — Correggio  receives  the  Commission — The  Siege 
of  Parma — The  Frescoes  of  the  Dome  and  Apse — Decorations  of  the  Nave — 
The  Lunette  of  "  St.  John  " — "SS.  Piacidus  and  Flavia" — The  "Descent 
from  the  Cross"      184-224 

CHAPTER  X 

MINOR    WORKS 

The"Ecce  Homo" — "Christ  in  tlie  Garden  of  (lethsemane  " — "  NoH  me 
tangere" — Pictures  of  the  Magdalen — "  St.  Catherine  Reading" — "Ft.  Joseph  " 
^^- St.  Jerome- 2:^5-240 

CHAPTER  XI 

THE    FRESCOES    IN    PAR.MA   CATHEDRAL 

The  "Madonna  della  Scala" — "The  Annunciation" — The  Cupola  of  the 
Cathedral — ThePendentivesand  the  Balustrade — The  Canon's  Jest — Drawings 
— The  Fame  of  the  Work , 241—272 

CHAPTER   XII 

CORREGGIO'S   GREAT   ALTAR-PIECES 

The  "  Madonna  with  St.  Sebastian" — The  "Madonna  with  St.  Jerome" — 
The  "Madonna  della  Scodella  " — "The  Nativity,  known  as  'La  Notte.'" — 
The  "  Madonna  with  St.  George  " 273—300 

CHAPTER  XIII 

MYTHOLOGICAL   AND   ALLEGORICAL   RICTURES 

"  Antiope" — "The  Education  of  Cupid  " — Events  in  Correggio— Works  exe- 
cuted for  Federigo  Gonzaga  and  their  history — "  lo  ' — "  Danae  " — "  Leda  " 
—  "Ganymede" — "Vice" — "Virtue" — The  Loves  of  Jupiter 301 — 325 

CHAPTER  XIV 
THE    DEATH   OF   CORREGGIO 

The  Painter's  End — Suiiposcd  Portraits  of  Correggio — His  Disposition  and 
Character — His  Tomb — Monuments  to  his  Memory — The  History  of  a  Skull  326 — 340 


•Mv  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER    XV 

THE    GKNIUS    AND    STYLE    OF    CORREGGIO 

Personality — School — Composition — Correggio  and  Michelangelo  compared — 
Subjects— Sketches— Drawing — His  intuitive  sense  of  Foreshortening — His 
Sentiment — Great  Artists  contemporary  with  him — His  tumultuous  grouping 
of  Figures  in  motion— Religious  Feeling  and  Sensuality — Essential  Character- 
istics of  Art  —  Correggio's  technique  —  Chiaroscuro  —  Light  —  Colour — His 
affinity  with  Leonardo,  Giorgione,  and  Lorenzo  Lotto — Technical  methods — 
His  use  of  the  Brush — "  Correggiosity  "  and  "  Demoniac  Force  " 341 — 367 

CHAPTER   X\  I 

correggio's  pupils  and  nirrATORS  ■ 

Francesco  Maria  Rondani — Michelangelo  Anselmi — Parmigianino — Girolamo 
Mazzola-Bedoli — Giorgio  Gandino  del  tJrano — Bernardino  Gatti,  called  // 
Sff/aro—Le\io  Orsi  of  Novellara — Giovanni  Giarola— Pomponio  Allegri— Ad- 
mirers and  Imitators— The  Carracci— Correggio's  Fame 368 — 392 

A  Catalogue  ov  CoRRKcnio's  Works 393 — 398 

Index 399-40S 


30,/or  "  Pier  tlella  Francestvi,"  rea^  "  Piero  (Jella  Francesca. " 

4,     ,,    "  which  formerly  filled  the  spaces  above  the  presses  or  wardrobes,"  7Vad  "  flanking  the  heads  of  the 

old  presses  or  bookcases.*' 
15,     ,,    "  the  great  toe  much  longer  than  the  rest,"  reaii  "the  great  toe  raised  above  the  rest." 
18,     ,,    "  foreground,"  rea^  "  Eastern  compartment." 
22,     „    "less  interesting,"  rfrt<^  "more  interesting." 
28,     ,.    "  his  arms  folded  on  his  breast,"  reaii  "  his  arms  outstretched." 
i3  from  top, /or  "produces,"  read  "produce." 
2  from  top,   the  sentence  beginning    "We  "should  read   as  follows: — "We  may,  however,  call  attention 
to  one  little  known  example  which  has,   perhaps,  a  better  claim  to  authenticity  than  tlie  rest,  though 
it  has  never  been  reproduced  before." 
II  from   lop,    last  sentence    of  paragraph    to  read  :  ".Slight   as  it  is  it  is   thoroughly  artistic   and  full    of 
animation  and  intelligence." 
3,  insert  after  "creature,"  "Termine  fisso  d'eterno  consiglio."     Paradise  x.v.\iii.,  v.  ^. 


LIST    OF    PLATES 

The  Madonna  with  St.  Sehastian.     (Dresden  (iallery.i Frontispiece 

The  Madonna  with  St.  Francis.     (Dresden  Callery.) 94 

The  Nativity.    (Signor  Ca\-.  Benigno  Crespi,  Milan.) 96 

Madonna  and  Child  with  .\ngees.    (Uffizi  Gallery,  P"lorencc.;> 100 

Madonna  with  two  Children  and  St.  Elizaiieth.     (In  the  Palace  at  Siymarin^'cn.)  102 

Christ  taking  leave  of  His  .Mother.     (Mr.  R.  H.  Benson,  London.) 104 

SS.  Peter,  Mary  Magdalen,   Martha,  and  Leonard.     (In  the  Collection   of  Lord 

.\shburton.J 106 

The  Holy  Family  in  Egypt.     (Uffizi  Gallery,  Florence.) 114 

The  Holy  Family.     (Hampton  Court  Palace.) 116 

The  Cupola  of  the  Camera  di  S.\n  Paola,  Par.ma 160 

Marriage  of  St.  Catherine.    (Lomre.) 170 

Madonna  DELLA  Cesta.     (National  Gallery,  London.) .' 180 

The  Adoration  of  the  X'iroin.     (Uffizi  Gallery,  Florence.) 182 

Head  of  an  .Apostle.     (Fresco  in  the  Cathedral  at  Parma.) 202 

St.  John  the  Evangelist.     (Fresco  in  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.) 218 

Martyrdo.m  of  SS.  Placidus,  Flavia,  Eutychius,  and  Victorinus.     (In  the  Parma 

Gallery.) 220 

ECCE  Homo.     (National  (lallery,  London.)       226 

Christ  in  the  Garden  of  Gethse.mane.    (Apsley  House,  London.) 232 

Noli  me  TaN(;ere.     (Museo  del  Prado,  Madrid.) 234 

St.  Catherine  Reading.     (Hampton  Court  Palace.) 238 

The  Cupola  of  the  Cathedral,  Par.m.v 252 

St.  Hilary.     (Pendcntive  of  the  Cupola  in  the  Cathedral  at  Parma.) 256 

St.  Bernard.     (Pendentive  of  the  Cupola  in  the  Cathedral  at  Parma.) 258 

St.  John  the  Baptist.     (Pendentive  of  the  Cupola  in  the  Cathedral  at  Parma.)  .    ...  260 

St.  Thomas.     (Pendentive  of  the  Cupola  in  the  Cathedral  at  Parma.) 264 


xvi  LIST    OF    PLATES 

rAGE 

The  Madonna  with  St.  Jerome, commonly  called  "  1l  Giorno."     'Parma  Gallery.)  -78 

Fragment  oi-  the  "St.  Jerome  Madonna."    (Parma  Galler)-.) 2S2 

.Angel  fro.m  the  "St.  Jerome  Madonna."    (Parma  Gallery.) 284 

Madonna  della  Scodella.    (Parma  Gallery.) 286 

Heads  FRO^r  the  "  IVL\donna  della  Scodella."    (Parma  Gallery.)  .    .       .           .  28S 

Study  for  "The  Nativity"  (La  Notte).    (British  Museum.) 290 

The  N.\tivity,  commonly  called  "La  Notte."    (Dresden  Gallery.) 292 

The  Madonna  with  St.  George.     (Uresdcn  Gallery.) 296 

Antiope.     (Louvre.) 302 

Danae.     (Borghese  Gallery,  Rome.) 316 

Leda.     (Royal  Gallery,  Berlin.) 318 

The  Procession  to  Calvary.    (Parma  Gallery.) 380 


LIST    OF    TEXT    ILLUSTRATIONS 


UlANA.     (Fresco,  by  Con-eggio,  in  the  Camera  di  San  I'aoln.) '/'///i--/iiii;r 

The  Coronation  of  the  Virgin,  bv  Correggio.   (Fresco,  now  in  the  Palatine  Library 

at  Parma.)      v 

Fragment  of  a  Fresco,  rx  Correggio.    (Mr.  L.  Mond,  London.)      v 

The  Annunciation,  by  Correggio.     (Fresco,  now  in  the  Parma  Gallery.) xi 

The  Three  Graces.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) i 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) ' 

TORCHIARA.     (Fortress  built  by  Pier  Maria  Rossi.) S 

Castle  of  thf,  Boiardi  at  Scandiaxo ii 

Medallion  of  Giovanni  Pico  della  Miranhoi.a 13 

Palace  of  the  Pio  Family  at  Carpi      if> 

C.-\STLE  of  the  Gonza(;a  FAMIl,^■  AT  Novellara 17 

Montechiarugolo,  Castle  of  the  Torelli 19 

Tomb  of  the  Pallavicini  at  Cortemaggiore -o 

Medal  of  Pier  Maria  Rossi 21 

Adonis.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) -4 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  .at  Parma.) 24 

View  of  Correggio 25 

Capital  of  a  Pillar  in  S.  Francesco  with  Arms  of  ihe  CokREc,(;Esciii  ...  27 

Home  of  the  Allegri  at  Correggio 33 

Bonus  Eventus.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.; 37 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 37 

Inner  Court  of  the  Palace  of  the  Lords  of  Correggio 41 

Doorway  of  the  Pal.\ce  of  the  Lords  of  Correggio     5' 

The  Earth.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 53 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 53 

Our  Lady  ok  Victory.     (Altar-piece  by  Mantegna,  in  the  Louvre.) S*"' 

Madonna  and  Child.     (From  ^Lantegna's  Triptych  in  the  L^filzi.) 5^ 

Madonna  and  Child.     (By  Mantegna,  in  the  Uifizi.) 59 

Holy  Family.     (By  Mantegna,  in  the  Church  of  Sanl' Andrea,  Mantua,  i •    ■  ^'O 

Fragment  from  Mantegn.Vs  Triumph  of  Julius  C.t.sar.    (From  the  Engraving.)  .  61 

Bust  of  Mantegna,  in  Sant'  Andrea  at  Mantua '^7 


xviii  LISI'    OF    I'KX'I'    ILLUSTRATIONS 

Castle  of  thk  Goxzaoa  Family  at  Mantua  ....  68 

I'KESCO  IN  the  Castle  at  Mantua 73 

Juno  Chastised.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  I'aniia.i  -75 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 75 

Portrait  of  Veronica  Gambara 77 

Armorial  Bearings  of  Veronica  CiAMiiAkA 7S 

Cupid  crowning  Isabella  d'Este.     (From  Lorenzo  Costa's  "Allegory"  of  her  Court. 

In  the  Louvre.)      88 

■Vllegorv  of  the  Court  of  Isabella  d'Este,  bv  Lorenzo  Costa.    (In  the  Louvre.)     89 

.\  Vestal.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 92 

Purri.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 92 

Church  of  San  Francesco,  at  Correggio 96 

Marriage  of  St.  Catherine,  by  Correggio.    (Dr.  (.',.  Frizzoni,  Milan.) icx) 

The  Piping  Faun,  by  Correggio.    (In  the  Munich  Gallery.; 107 

Malaspina  Madonna,  by  Correcxjio.     (In  the  Communal  Gallery,  Pavia.) 108 

liOLOGNiNi  Madonna,  by  Correggio.    ( In  the  Municipal  Gallery,  Milan.; 109 

Cami'OKi   Madonna,  by  Correggio.     Mn  the  Estensc  Gallery,  Modena.) iir 

The  Philosopher.     ^Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 112 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma. j 112 

The  Madonna  with    the    Rabbit,  known   as   "  L.\   Zing.\kei,la."     :In  the  Naples 

Museum.) 117 

The  Madonna  with   ihk  two  Ciiii.drkx.    (In  the  Prado,  Madrid.; 120 

The  Madonna  with  the  two  Children,  by  Correggio.   (M  FianUfort-on-the-.\Iain.;    121 
Coi'\-  OF  C0RRE(;(;io's  "  Redee.mer,"  by  one  oi'  the  Cakk.\cci.     fin  tlie  Vatican.;  .     124 

St.  John  Baptist.     (Panel  from  Correggio's  lost  Triptych.; 127 

Ganymede.     (Fragment  of  a  Fresco,  in  the  Modena  Gallery.; 129 

Church  ok  Albinea 133 

Copy  OF  THE  Ai.binea  Madonna,   b\   CokkE(,gio.     1  In  the  Breia,  Milan.) 136 

The  Young  Man  fleeinc;  fro.m  the  Captors  of  Ciikisf.     (Copy,  after  Correggio. 

In  the  Parma  Gallery.) 137 

Fragment  of  Fresco,  by  Correggio.    (Mr.  I..  Mond,  London.; 139 

Fricsco   in  San  Giovanni  Evan(;elista,  by  A.  Carracci,  after  Correggio.     (In 

the  Parma  Gallery.) 140 

I'kesgo  in  San  Giovanni  EvANcaoiisiA,  by  .\.  Carracci,  .mfer  Correggio.     (In 

the  Parina  Gallery.) 142 

The  Temple  OF  JUPITICR.     (Frcsro  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  I'arma.l 143 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 143 

Cathedral  and  Baptistery,  Parma 145 

Virgin  Enthroned,  by  Casei.li-Tempkrf.i.i.i.    ^Formerly  in  the  Consorzio  at  Parma..    14S 

St.  Catherine  before  the  Dot  roRs,  va   Akaldi.     :  l'"iesco  at  Parma.) 149 

The    ANNUNCi.\iTf)N,    WITH    St.    Caiherixe    and    Si.    Si;b.\stia\,   ascribed    ki 

LoDOVico  DA  Parma  or  to  Araldi.  (In  the  Parma  Gallery.)  ... 
Coat  of  Arms  of  the  City  of  Parma.  (In  the  Lille  Museum.)  ... 
Cloister  of  the  Convent  of  San  P,\oi.o,  Parma 


i,isi-  oi-    I'l'.xr  ii.i,us'iK.\  rioxs  xi\ 

Coat  f)i-  Arms  of  nil',  AiiUKas  (',io\ann.\  Piacknza i6o 

Hon-  (".KNii  FROM  THi-;  Camera  di  Sax  Faoi.o.  ai"1kr  Corkegcio.     (In  the  Weimar 

Museum.) |6, 

Diana.     (Fresco,  by  Correggio,  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo.) 166 

Fk.vgment  from  the  Histor\   of  St.  James,  i;\  Mantecna.    (In  the  Cappella  degh 

Eremitani,  Padua.) '('^ 

Marriace  of  St.  Catherine,  nv  Correggio.    (Signor  I'aolo  Fabrizi,  Rome.)     ...  172 

Marriage  of  St.  Catherine,  ascriheu  to  Correggio.  (In  tlie  Xaples  Museum.)  .  173 
Dra\vin(;  of  the  Marriage  of  St.  C.\therini-:,  .\scrii:eii  to  Correggio.     (In  the 

Royal  !.il5rary,  Turin.) '7'' 

.Marriage  of  St.  Catherine,  AsCRiiiEU  to  Correggio.     :  Ur.  Th.  Srhall,  Berlin.)    .  177 

Madonna  and  Child  with  Saint.s.     (Sketch  by  Correggio.     In  the  \'ienna  Museum.)  180 

The  BlANCONl   .Madonna.     (From  the  Engraving.) 181 

Charitv.     (In  the  Louvre.) 182 

The  F.vtes.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 184 

PUTTI.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.)   .        184 

Interior  of  San  C.iovanni  Evangelista,  Par.ma 188 

.\I'0ST1.ES  .\ND  Cheruhs.     (Study  for  the  Cupola  of  Sau  C.iovanni   Evangelista.      In  the 

N'ienna  Museum. j 189 

Cupola  and  Tower  of  San  Ciovanni  Evangelisia,  at  Parma 192 

Abbey  of  Torchiara,  near  Parma      193 

Door    and   Windows    in    nil-,   Cilmtkr-iioise   01    S\\   Ciov.wni    F:\-.\ngei.ista, 

I'AKMA 195 

.AriOliRAPH    SK.VKD    .\\ro\IO    D.\    CoKEZA,    .MaKCH     I5,     I  524 I96 

The  Cri'oi.A  oi    San  Ciovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.  i;v  Correggio 197 

.'\POSTLEs  AND  .Xngfi.s,  |!V  CorREGcuo.    (From  the  Cupola  of  San  Ciio\anni  Exangclisla. 

Parma. J 199 

.Apostles  and  Angels,  BV  Corregi;io.     (From  the  Cupola  of  San  C.ioxaiini  Evangelista. 

Parma.) 200 

Apostles  and  .Angels,  by  Correggio.     (From  the  Cupola  of  San  (".io\anni  Evangelista, 

Parma.)      202 

STl■D^■    OF   AN   .^POSTLK    FOR    I'HE   CUPOl.A    f)F    SaN    C.IOVANNI    EVANGELISTA,    PaRM.\, 

BY  CORRE<;f;iO.     (In  the  Louxre. : 203 

.Apostles  and  .Angels,  nv  Correggio.     'From  theCuimla  of  San  C.iovanni  Evangelista, 


.Apostles  and  .AN(;ei.s,  by  Correggio.      From  the  Cupola  of  San  C,io\anni  Evangelista, 

Parma.)      205 

The  Symbols  of  the  Evangei.isis.  n\  Corre(;gio.      Study  for  ihc  Cupola  of  San 

Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.     In  ilu-  l.nuvre.) 206 

St.  Luke  and  St.  Ambrose,  Si.  .Mark  and   St.  GRiiGOR\.  i:\  CoRRF:(;Gin.    (Pcn- 

dentixes  of  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.  ■ 208 

St.   John   and   St.   .Augustine,  St.    Matthew   and   St.   Jerome,  bv  Correggio. 

(Pendentives  of  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.; 209 

Choir-stai.i>  in  San  Giovanni  Evangelista.  Parma  . 212 


xviii  LIST    Ol'     ['RXT    ILLUSTRATIONS 

Castle  of  the  Goxzaga  Family  at  Mantua 68 

Fresco  in  the  Castle  at  Mantua 73 

Juno  Chastised.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Panna.) 75 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.  ,i 75 

I'ORTRAIT   Ol     X'ERONICA    CiA.MIiARA ' 11 

Armorial  Hk.vrincs  ok  Veronica  Cambara 78 

Cupid  crowning  Isabella  d'Este.    (From  Lorenzo  Costa's  "Allegor\''  of  licr  Court. 

In  the  Louvre.)      SS 

.\LLEG0RY   OE  THE  COURT  OF  ISABELLA  U'EsTE,  1!V  LORENZO  COSTA.      (In  the  Louvre.)        Sy 

.A  Vestal.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 92 

PUTTi.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 92 

Church  of  San  Francesco,  at  Correggio 96 

Marriage  of  St.  Catherine,  by  Correggio.    (Dr.  (;.  Frizzoni,  Milan. j 100 

The  Piping  Faun,  by  Correggio.    (In  the  Munich  Gallery.) 107 

Malaspina  Madonna,  by  Correggio.     (In  the  Communal  Gallery,  Pavia.) 108 

BoLOGNiNi  Madonna,  by  Correggio.    (In  the  Municipal  (iallery,  Milan. ,1 109 

Campori  Madonna,  by  Correggio.    (In  the  Estense  Gallery,  Modena.) in 

The  Philosopher.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  I'aolo  at  Parma.) 112 

I'tiri.       FiL-sco  in  lilt  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 112 

Thk  Mai.onna  Willi    TiiK    Rabbit,  known    as   "La    Zingakei.la."     iln  the  Naples 

Museum.) 117 

The  Madonna  with  the  TWO  Chilhrex.    (In  the  Prado,  Madrid. i 120 

TllF.  M.MiONNA  with  THE  TWO  CHILDREN,  BY  CORREGGIO.    (At  Fiankfort-on-lhe-Main.)     121 
Cor\    OF   CORREGGIO'S  "REDEEMER,"   BY   ONE  OF  THE   CARRACCI.      (In   the  Vatican.)  .      124 

Si.  John  Baptist.     (Panel  from  Correggio's  lost  Triptych.) 127 

Ganymede.     (Fragment  of  a  Fresco,  in  the  Modena  Gallery.) 129 

Church  of  Albinea 133 

Coi'v  OF   itie  .Albinea  Madonna,  by  CORRii(;Gio.     (In  the  ISrera,  Milan.) 136 

The  VobXG  Man  fleeing  from  the  Captors  of  Christ.     (Copy,  after  Correggio. 

In  the  Parma  (lallcry.) 137 

Fragment  of  Fresco,  by  Correggio.    (Mr.  L.  Mond.  London.) 139 

Fresco   in  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  by  A.  Carracci,  after  Correggio.    (In 

the  Parma  Gallery.) 140 

Fresco  in  San  Giovanni  EvAMnii.isrA,  \:\  .\.  Carracci,  .xi'if.k  CokuI'.ggio.     (In 

the  Parma  Gallery.) 142 

The  Temple  of  Jupiter.     (Fresco  in  the  Camcr.i  di  San   I'.iolo  at  I'ainia.l 143 

PUTTI.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 143 

Cathedral  and  Baptistery,  1'\k\i\ 145 

Virgin  Enthroned,  by  Casei.i.i-Te.mfi  ki  i  i  i.    iTomicrly  in  the  Consorzio  .it  Panii.1.1    148 

St.  Catherine  before  the  Doctors,  \\\   .Au.m.ih.    il'ic^rnai  I'.iniia.' 149 

The    Annunciation,    with    St.    Catheri.ni,     \.\i>    Si.    Si.:i;,\si  i.w,   ascribfh    ki 

Lorjovico   DA   Parm.\  or  to  .\rai.di.     (In  ihr  I'ainia  Gallery.,1 151 

('o.\t  of  Arms  01     iiif  Cfi\    m     I'au.ma.     (In  the  l.illc  Miismm.) 152 


I.IS'I'    OF     l-KXI'    ILLU.SIRAI'IUNS 


Coat  oi-  Arms  of  ihk  Ar.iiESS  Ciovaxna  Piacen/a i6o 

Bo\-    (".ENIl    l-KOM   THK   CAMERA    Dl    SaN    PaOI.O,   AFTER    CORREGUIO.      (  111  the  Weill!:!!" 

Museum.) ifji 

UlANA.     (Fresco,  by  Correggio,  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo.) \6(> 

Fr.\g.ment  fro.m  the  History  of  St.  Ja.mes,  by  Mantecna.    (In  the  Cappclla  degli 

Eiemitani,  Padua.) 168 

.M.\rria(;e  of  St.  Catherine,  ry  Correugio.    (Signer  I'aolo  Fabrizi,  Rome.)     ...  172 

Marriage  of  St.  C.-vtherine,  ascribed  to  Correggio.  (In  the  Naples  Museum.)  ,  173 
Drawt.n'g  of  the  Marriage  of  St,  Catherine,  ascribed  to  Correg(;io.    (In  the 

Royal  Library,  Turin.) 176 

.Marri.u;e  of  St.  Catherine,  .\.scriked  to  Correggio.     lUr.  Th.  Schall,  Beilin.)    .  177 

.VIadoxxa  and  Child  with  Saints.     (Sketch  by  Correggio.     In  the  \'ienna  -Museuin.)  iSo 

The  Bianconi  Madonna.     (P'rom  the  Engraving.) 181 

CHAR1T^■.     Tn  the  Lou\re.  1 182 

The  Fates.     (Fresco  in  the  Camei-a  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 1S4 

PUTTi.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 184 

Interior  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma 188 

.-\P0STl,Es  .\ND  Cherubs.     (Study  for  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista.     In  the 

\"ienna  Muscun!.) 189 

Cupola  and  Tower  of  San  Giovanni  E\-.\\c;elisi.\,  .\'r  P.\rm.\ 192 

.\BBEV    of    TORCHIARA,    NEAR    PARMA        193 

Door   and   Windows    in    the   Ciiai'TEr-iioi'se   oi-   San   (;,iov.\nni    Evangei.ist.n, 

I'-^i^^i-^ '95 

Autograph  signed  .Antonio  da  Cure/^a,  March  15,  1524 196 

The  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma,  by  Correggio 197 

Apostles  and  .\ngels,  by  Correggio.    (From  tlic  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista, 

Parma.) 199 

Apostles  and  Angels,  by  Corrf,G(;io.     (From  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista, 

Parma.)      200 

Apostles  and  .Angels,  by  Correggio.    (From  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista, 

Parma.)      202 

Study  of  an  .Apostle  for  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Pak.ma, 

BY  Correggio.     Tn  the  Lou\  re.  < 203 

.Apostles  and  .\\gki.s,  by  Correg.gio.    jFrnm  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista, 

''■^''"''■' ^04 

Apostles  and  Angels,  u\  Correggio.    '  From  the  Cupola  of  San  Gio\anni  Evangelista, 

The  Symbols  of  the  Evangelist.s,  by  Corricggio.     i  Study  for  the  Cupola  of  San 

Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.     In  the  Louvre.) 206 

St.  Luke  and  St.  .Ambrose,  St.  Mark  and   St.  Gregory,  by  Corregi;io.     (Pcn- 

dentives  of  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.  I 208 

St.  John  .\nd  St.  .Augustine,  St.   Matthew  and  St.  Jerome,  by  Correggio. 

(Pendentives  of  the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.  I 209 

Choir-stalls  in  San  Giovanni  Ev.\ngelista,  Parma .  212 


XX  LIST    OI'"    TEXT    ILLUSTRATIONS 

Apse  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma,  ev   Cesark   Aretusi,  after    Cor- 

REGGio 213 

St.  John  the   Baptist,  from  a  copy  i>.v  the  Carracci,  after  Correggio.    (In 

the  Parma  (Gallery.) 216 

The   Coronation   of  the   Virgin,  p.v    Correggio.      (Study  for   the   Apse  of  San 

Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma.    In  the  Louvre.) 217 

Study   for   the   Martyrdom   of   St.  Placidus  and   St.  Flavia,  dy  Correggio. 

(In  the  Louvre.) 220 

The  Descent  fro.m  the  Cross,  by  Correggio.    (In  the  Parma  Gallery.) 223 

Ino  LeUCOTHOE.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma. ) 225 

PUTTl.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 225 

Figure  of  an  Apostle,  nv  Correggio.     (Study  for  the  Cupola  of  the  Cathedral  at 

Panna.     In  the  \'ienna  Museum.) 227 

Study  of  Children,  by  Correggio.     (In  the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  Collection,  Chats- 
worth.)    228 

Study  of  Children,  by  Correggio.     (In  the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  Collection,  Chats- 
worth.)     22Q 

Study  of  Children,  UY  Correggio.     (In  the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  Collection,  Chats- 
worth.)     230 

Reading  Mage)Alen,  formerly  ascribed  to  Correggio.    (In  the  Dresden  Gallcr\.     237 

St.  Jero.ME.     (From  an  engraving;  in  the  Palatine  Library,  Parma.) 238 

St.  Joseph.     (From  an  engraving  in  the  Palatine  Library,  Parma.) 239 

Ceres.    (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 241 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 241 

The  Madonna  della  Scala  (Madonna  of  the  Staircase).     (Fresco  by  Correggio, 

in  the  Parma  Gallery.) 242 

Madonna  della  Scala,  by  Correggio.     (In  the  Weimar  Museum.) 244 

\'iRGix  AND  Child,  by  Correggio.    (In  the  British  Museum.) 245 

Parma  Cathedrai 248 

Interior  of  the  Cathedral  .\t  Parma 249 

Correggio's  Autograph  Agreement  to  paint  the  Frescoes  in  the  Cathedral    252 
Figure   from   Soffits  of  the  .'Arches   in   the  Cupola  of  the  Cathedral  .\t 

Parma,  by  Correggio 254 

Figure   from    Soffits   of    the   .Arches    in    the  Cupol.x  of   itie  Cathedral  at 

P.vRMA,  I'.Y  Correggio 255 

Fk;urk  from  Soffits  of   the   .Arches   in    iiik   Cui'oi.a   of    ihk  C.vthedral   .vr 

Parma,  n\  Correggio 256 

Figure  from   Soffits  of    ihk   .\rciies   in    the   Cupola  of    iiie  Cathedral  at 

Parma,  by  Corre(;gio 257 

Figure   fro.m   Soffits  of    riiE  .Arches   in   the  Cupola  of    phe  Cathedral  at 

I' ARM  A,  BY  Correggio 258 

Figure   from   Soffits  of  the  Arches   in   the  Cupola  of   the  Cathedral  at 

Parma,  hy  Correggio 259 

Study  for   the  Pendkniivk,  with  St.  John,  bv  ("oRkEGGin.      Intlic  Louvre.)   .    .    260 


:X\-    ILLUS'I'RATIONS 


ApOstlf^s  and  Anck.I.s,   ]'.\  CORREi;i;i().     (Fresrocs  of  tlie  Cupnla  in  the  Cnthedral  al 


Apostles  and  Angels,  ky  Correc. 

(UO.     (Frescoes  of  the  Cupol; 

in   the  Cathedral  .al 

I'arma.^i 

(".ROUP  SURROUNDINC,  'I'ME  ASCEND1^ 

r,  \'iKi;iN.     (Fresro  in  ihe  Cu 

)ola  of  the  Cathedral 

Eve,  v.\  Corrf.ggio.    (Stuth-  for  ilic 

Fresco  in  the  Cathedral  at  V 

irnia.     In  the  liritish 

Miispiim.1   _ 

263 


The  Assumption,  k\  Correcgio.     i. Study  for  the  Cupola  of  Parma  Cathedral.      In  the 

Dresden  Museum.) 268 

AoANt,   Abraham,    and    Isaac,    bv    Correggio.      (Study    for   the   Cupola   of    I'arma 

Cathedral.      In  the  Royal  Library,  Windsor  Castle.) 269 

Study  for  an  Annunclation,  attributed  to  Correggio.    (In  the  Louvrc.i    ,    .    .  270 

Head  of  a  Boy,  a  Copy  after  Correggio.     (In  the  Ufifizi,  Florence.^ 271 

A  Satyr.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  I'aolo  at  Parma. ) 273 

Puttl     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  )\arma.) 273 

View  of  Modena     277 

Correggio's  Autograph  Agreement  for  .\lt.\r-pieci-,  of  "The  ^■.\TnlT^'■     .    .    .  292 

Church  of  San  Prospero,  Reggio 293 

Study    for   the   Madow.v    with    Sr.  Ckorge,  v.\    Correggio.     (In   the   Dresden 

Museum.) 296 

Study  OF  Putti  for  ihe  MAnoNN.\  wrni  S  r.  (iroKCK.  In  the  Uffizi,  Florence.).  297 
St.  Ag.\tha,  St.  Anthony,  St.  John   itiI',  Paimisi,  and  Sr.  Rnni.  i!\   Correggio. 

(Drawing  in  the  Uffizi,  Florence.) 299 

Chastity.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.  > 301 

Putti.     (F"resco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 301 

Study  FOR  .^NTIOPE,  BY  Correggio.     (In  the  Royal  Library,  Windsor.) 302 

Dra\vin(;  OF  Woman   reclining,  with    Children,  .\scribed  to  Correggio.    iln 

the  Louvre.)      • 304 

The  Education  of  Cupid,  by  Corregiuo.     (In  the  National  (jallery.) 308 

lo,  BY  Correggio.     (In  the  Belvedere,  Vienna.) 315 

Study  for  the  Ganymede.    (In  the  Weimar  Museum.) 320 

Vice,  an  Allegory,  by  Corrpx.gio.    (In  the  Louvre.)     322 

Virtue,  an  Allegory,  by  Correggio.     (In  the  Louvre.) 323 

Virginity.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 326 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 326 

St.ytue  of  Correggio,  by  .'Vgostino  Ferrarini.     (In  the  Piazza,  Parma.) 338 

Statue  of  Correggio,  BV  Vincenzo  X'ELA.     (In  the  Piazza,  Correggio.) 339 

Supposed  Coat  of  Arms  of  Correggio     340 

Fortune.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.j      341 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 341 

M.\donna   and;Child,  with  St.  Sebastian  and  St.  Roch,  by  Anselmi.    (In  the 

Parma  Gallery. , 347 

The  Madonna  with  St.  Z.\chariah,  by  Parmigianino.    (In  the  Ufifizi,  Florence.)   .  348 


xxii  LIST    OF    TEXT    ILLUSTRATIONS 

The  Annunciation,  \:\  C,\\<o\.\mo  Mazzola-Bedoi.i.  (In  ilie  Xaples  Museum.)  .  .  349 
Madonna  and  Child   with    Saints,  1!V   Giorcio   Gandino    hel   Grant}.     'In  the 

Famia  Gallery.) 350 

The   Virgin   and    Dead  Christ,  uv  Correcc.io.     (FraKment  from  the  I'ieiJi  in  the 

Parma  Gallery.) 356 

Amorini    sHarpkninc;    ihitr  Arrows.   v.\    Corrkgoio.     fFragment  from  the  Daniie 

in  the  Borghese  Gallery,  Rome.) 361 

Madonna  and  Child,  by  Rondani.     (In  the  Naples  Museum.:     367 

Minerva.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.)      368 

Putti.     (Fresco  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma.) 368 

Madonna   and   Child,  with   St.  Augustine  and  St.  Jerome,  by  Ronijani.    (\n 

the  Parma  Gallery.)      37° 

.Madonna  and  Child,  wtth  Saints,  i;y  Ronhani.     (In  the  Naples  Museum.  1     ...  371 

Portrait  of  Parmigianino,  uy  Himself.     (In  the  Ufiizi  Gallery.) 373 

.MARRI.4GE  of  St.  Catherine,  by  Parmigianino.    (In  the  Parma  Gallery. ,1 374 

Portrait  of  Antea,  by  Parmigianino.     (In  the  Naples  Museum.) 375 

Mothers   presenting    Offerings.      (Fragment   from  the    Conccptioiu    by   <'jirolamo 

Mazzola-Bedoli.     In  the  Parma  Gallery.) 376 

St.  Clara,  by  Girolamo  MAZZOLA-BEUdLL     ,  In  the  Naiiles  Museum.) 377 

St.    Robert,   Abbot   of    Chaise-Diei',    v-\    Gir<il.\mo    M.\zzola-Bedoi.i.     i  In    the 

Parma  Gallery.) },l'^ 

PoRiRAlT    OF    Nicoi.n    OuiRiri)    S.\\\  IT  \l,l :.     (School   nf   Correggio.      In    the    I'.inna 

(iallci-y.i      381 

.Allegorical  Figure  oi-  I'.\rm\  lmp.racini;  .\lessandr(.i  F.nrnesf,  r,\   Girdl.xmo 

Mazzola-Bedoli.     (In  the  Naples  .Museum.) 3S4 

Madonna   and   Child,  with   the    Inf.\nt  St.  John,  i:\    Pomi'onio  .Ali.eciri.     (In 

the  Parma  Gallery.)     385 

The  Legend  of  1)i.\n.v  and  Act.1£0n,  by  1'.\r.\iigianino.  (In  the  Castle  of  Fontanellato. '  3S<') 

TheLegkndof  Dian.v  and  .^ct.t.ON,  by  P.vrnhgi.vnino.  (In  the  Castle  of  Fontanellato. )  387 

.\lAh(i\N.\  .\Nl)  ClllLli.  with   Saixi'S,   i:\    1'assakotti.     (:  In  the  Bologna  Gallery.)     .    .  389 


I 

CORREGGIO    IN    HIS    NATIVE    CITY 


CHAPTER    I 

THE    RENAISSANCE    IN    THE    EMILIA 

THE  REVIVAL    OF  CULTURE — THE   HORRORS  OF    THE  MIDDLE    AGES — THE   EENTIVOGLI 

AT   BOLOGNA — THE  BOIARDI    AT    SCANDIANO THE  PICO  FAMILY  AT   MIRANDOLA — THE 

PIG  FAMILY  AT  CARPI — THE  GONZAGHI  AT  NOVELLARA — THE  TORELLI  AT  GUASTALLA 
AND  AT  MONTECHIARUGOLO — THE  PALLAVICINI  AT  CORTEM AGGIORE — THE  ROSSI  AT 
PARMA — LOVE    OF    ART    IX    ITALY. 


IW'b^LL  remember  a  certain 
chilly  April  morning  I  once 
spent  on  the  summit  of 
Cimone,  the  highest  point  of  the 
Emilian  Apennines.  The  pale 
light  of  dawn  had  scarcely 
pierced  the  mass  of  floating 
cloud  about  the  peak,  which  the 
wind  drove  before  it  at  inter- 
vals, tearing  it  capriciously  into 
shreds,  now  of  dense,  now  of 
diaphanous  vapour.  From  every 
twig  and  shoot  silvered  by 
the    mist,    leaves    and    drops    of 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

moisture  fell  slowly  to  the  ground.  The  melancholy  of  earth  and 
sky,  still  shuddering  under  the  touch  of  winter,  entered  into  the 
soul,  till  the  sweet  tranquillity  of  spring  seemed  at  most  but  a  far- 
away possibility. 

Suddenly,  the  disc  of  the  sun  shone  through  the  gray  veil  of  cloud, 
but  so  shrouded  that  it  was  possible  to  gaze  at  it  unflinchingly 
for  a  time.  Then  the  mist  began  to  disperse  above,  and  to  roll 
along  the  valleys  below,  in  long  strips  and  banderoles,  which  furled 
their  floating  streamers,  and  disappeared  like  a  swarm  of  flying- 
ghosts.  In  a  few  minutes  the  blue  of  the  sky  and  the  gold  of  the 
sun  shed  a  glow  of  youthful  joy  over  the  landscape,  and  the  vast 
valley  of  the  Po  lay  clear  and  luminous  below,  from  the  Eugan:ean 
hills  to  the  mountains  of  Verona. 

Watercourses  and  marshes  sparkled  in  the  distance  ;  dim  clusters 
of  buildings  revealed  the  sites  of  cities  and  villages,  round  which 
ancient  fortresses,  villas,  and  churches  rose  sharp  and  radiant  among 
the  neighbouring  mountains  ;  and  a  joyful  sound  of  bells,  mingling 
with  the  songs  of  innumerable  birds,  seemed  to  hail  the  return 
of  s[)ri ng. 

Thus,  when  the  dark  mists  of  media^valism  rolled  away,  and  the 
Italian  spirit  rose  again  from  the  dead,  a  spiritual  resurrection  closely 
allied  to  the  natural  phenomena  I  have  described  took  place  on  this 
self-same  territory,  when  Bologna,  Ferrara,  Mantua,  and  Parma 
suddenly  shone  forth  as  radiating  centres  of  the  arts  and  sciences, 
the  greater  stars  of  constellations  which  numbered  among  their  lesser 
lights  Scandiano,  Reggio,  Modena,  Carpi,  IMirandola,  Correggio,  and 
Novellara. 

Throughout  the  period  of  the  Renaissance  each  of  these  cities 
could  boast  of  great  ladies,  princes,  and  soldiers  of  the  utmost 
splendour  and  refinement,  and  of  famous  artists  and  men  of  letters, 
whose  ijrestigc  entitled  their  parent  towns  to  vie  not  unsuccessfully 
with  the  greatc-r  Italian  courts,  where  all  was  refined  and  magnificent, 
polished  and  sum[)tuous,  from  personal  adornment  to  architectural 
decoration,  from  domestic  habits  to  s()cial  usage,  from  tournament  to 
actual   warfare,    from    pastimes   to   funerals.      Each  civic   festival,  each 


THE    REVIVAL    OF    CULTURE  3 

religious  function,  was  a  spectacle  animated  by  the  living  flame  of  art. 
Every  detail  was  so  designed  as  to  gratify  eyes  athirst  for  beauty  ; 
and  this  resthetic  instinct,  this  passion  for  the  beautiful,  informed  every 
action  of  men,  even  such  as  sprang  from  a  perverted  moral  sense,  or 
were  the  outcome  of  suffering  and  anguish.  Thus,  every  creation  of 
genius  was  secure  of  a  sympathy  that  took  small  account  of  propriety 
or  of  virtue.  The  sinister  elegance  of  Pietro  Aretino's  scurrilous 
invective  attracted  universal  admiration  ;  at  once  the  terror  and  the 
favourite  of  popes,  cardinals,  and  princes,  he  was  acclaimed  by  the 
title  of  "  the  divine."  Machiavelli  wrote  admiringly  of  the  con- 
summate atrocity  of  Ccesar  Borgia,  in  luring  the  various  leaders  who 
had  conspired  against  him  to  their  doom  at  Sinigaglia.  Scholars  of 
the  University  of  Perugia  ran  in  crowds  to  see  the  dead  body  of 
Astorre  Baglione,  because  its  composed  yet  tragic  grandeur  of  atti- 
tude was  said  to  suggest  that  of  some  antique  Roman  famous  for 
his  heroic  end.^  And  some  few  hours  earlier,  perhaps,  the  youthful 
Raphael,  conquering  his  natural  timidity,  had  hastened  into  the 
street  to  watch  the  same  Baglione  dashing  into  Perugia  on  horse- 
back, the  torchlight  gleaming  on  his  armour,  like  some  divinely 
menacing  Archangel  Michael.- 

The  fever  of  art  inflamed  the  blood  of  all  sorts  and  conditions  of 
men.  The  nobles  and  the  clergy  competed  against  each  other  to  secure 
the  services  of  artists  and  acquire  their  works ;  the  very  populace 
discussed  and  admired  them.  Antimaco  relates  that  the  crowd  which 
flocked  to  see  Mantegna's  S.  Afar/a  dclla  Vittoria  "  was  something 
incredible,  and  that  the  people  could  not  tire  of  gazing  upon  this  noble 
work."  '^ 

The  discovery  of  the  Laocuon  caused  such  enthusiasm  that  the 
crowd  besieged  the  Terma;  day  and  night.  A  contemporary  writes  : 
"All  Rome  flocked  thither  die  noctuquc,  as  if  to  a  jubilee.''^  When 
Benvenuto  Cellini's  Perseus  was  set   up  in    the  Piazza  della   Signoria 

1  Franc.  Matarazzo,  Croiiaca  di  Perugia  {Archiv.  storko  italiano,  xvi.  122). 
-  Burckhardt,  Die  Cultur  der  Renaissance  in  Italien,  chap.  iv.  (Leipzig,  1869). 
3  Attilio  Portioli,  La  vera  storia  di  un  dipinio  alebrc  {Giornale  di  erudizioiic  artistica). 
ii.  157.     Perugia,  1873. 

^   Giornale  storico  della  letteratura  ita liana,  xi.  210. 


4  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

in   Florence,  "  such  a  concourse  ot   persons  assembled  to  see  it  that  it 
would  be  impossible  to  give  any  idea  of  their  number."  ^ 

This  joyous  enthusiasm  seems  all  the  more  vital  and  vigorous 
when  we  consider  the  life  of  Italy  in  the  Middle  Ages,  throughout 
which  the  cities  lay  stifled,  as  it  were,  under  a  funeral  pall  of  dense 
superstition.  Pictures  of  skeletons  and  cross-bones  piled  at  the  foot  of 
a  crucifix  were  common  ornaments  of  the  street-corners.  In  little 
niches  above  the  doors  of  the  monasteries,  ghastly  skulls  seemed  to 
glare  at  the  spectator  from  livid  and  hollow  sockets.  The  spaces 
around  churches  and  sanctuaries  were  white  with  funeral  urns  and 
head-stones  ;  within,  and  in  the  cloisters,  were  other  tombs  ;  and  under- 
ground, gloomy  crypts,  into  which  the  obscurer  corpses  were  lowered 
indiscriminately.  He  who  offered  up  a  prayer  knelt  on  the  marble 
that  closed  a  sepulchre.  The  air  became  putrid,  the  black  shafts  of 
cypresses  rose  on  every  side,  images  of  death  and  its  terrors  held 
undisputed  sway.  In  times  of  pestilence,  corpses  accumulated  up  to 
the  very  walls  in  the  streets  and  squares.  In  the  depths  of  night,  the 
sinister  howling  and  trampling  of  famished  beasts,  the  groans  of  the 
dying,  the  despairing  sobs  of  the  superstitious,  inspired  the  grim  and 
sarcastic  conceits  of  the  so-called  Dances  of  Death  :  sarcastic,  because 
Death,  in  his  ruthless  impartiality,  smote  even  the  great  and  powerful 
with  the  same  fatal  vertigo  and  delirium.  The  poor  and  wretched 
recognised  Heaven's  vengeance  on  the  oppressor,  and  derided  him, 
exulting  in  the  knowledge  that  here  at  least  the  mighty  were  powerless, 
for  all  their  weapons,  and  the  rich,  for  all  their  abundance.  The 
danse  macabre  they  daily  witnessed  worked  like  a  madness  upon  the 
agitated  fancy  of  the  populace.  The  emperor  and  the  beggar,  the 
pope  and  the  arch-heretic,  the  high-born  lady  and  the  brazen  courtesan, 
the  noble  clothed  in  purple  and  gold,  and  the  tattered  vagabond — all 
joincil  hands  in  the  giddy  round  ;  and  Death,  laughing  hideously  the 
while,  rushed  upon  \.\\(\  slothful,  overthrew  the  rebellious,  and  crushed 
the  proud.  Meanwhile  priestly  orators  poured  forth  threats  and 
denunciations  from  the  puljjit  ;  monks  prophesied  disasters  in  the 
[jiazzas  ;  p()i)es  hurled  their  excominunicalory  thumlerbolts,  and  the 
'  Cellini,  Aiitohiografui,  cIkiji.  xiii. 


THE    RKVIVAI,    OF    CULTURE  5 

minds   of  writers    sank  exhausted   under  the    incubus   of  strange  and 
terrible  visions. 

The  general  squalor  was  most  apparent  in  the  cities.  After  the 
ringing  of  the  angelus  there  were  few  passengers  on  the  muddy  or 
dusty  highways.  At  night  the  darkness  was  only  broken  here  and 
there  by  lamps  burning  dimly  before  sacred  effigies,  while  mortals 
slept  or  suffered  within  the  houses. 

Life  had  become  one  long  terror  and  peril.  Interminable 
domestic  broils,  repeated  foreign  invasions,  the  fratricidal  wars  of 
city  with  city,  commune  with  commune,  brought  in  their  train  fire, 
sack,  and  carnage,  the  overthrow  of  buildings,  the  destruction  of 
harvests,  and  their  necessary  complements,  dearth,  famine,  and 
pestilence. 

But  after  the  crusades  a  gentle  breath  of  new-born  gaiety 
seemed  to  make  itself  felt  through  the  sufferings  and  dangers  of  the 
times,  and  to  show  its  workings  alike  in  life  and  art.  It  was  the 
convalescence  of  the  Italian  spirit,  returning  to  the  joyous  energy  of 
classic  times  with  all  the  sweet  and  smiling  calm  of  renewed  health. 
Crises,  struggles,  and  despair  still  convulsed  the  land  at  times  ;  but 
such  visitations  were  less  prolonged  and  crushing,  and  all  the  joy  of 
healthy  life  asserted  itself  in  the  intervals.  The  famous  fresco  of  the 
Campo  Santo  at  Pisa,  the  Triumph  of  Death,  represents  a  joyous 
band  diverting  themselves  with  music  and  song  in  the  close  vicinity 
of  a  mass  of  festering  corpses,  and,  in  a  like  spirit,  contemporary 
chronicles  pass  from  the  records  of  war  and  pestilence  to  accounts  of 
banquets  and  tournaments.  The  fresco,  indeed,  might  serve  as 
illustration  to  the  chronicle  of  Fra  Salimbene.  Describing  the 
apparition  of  certain  sinister  stars  in  1 239,  he  goes  on  to  relate 
how,  being  in  Pisa  at  the  time,  he  entered  a  certain  shady  and  ver- 
durous court  of  the  city  in  quest  of  alms  for  his  convent,  and  there 
lighted  upon  an  assembly  of  youths  and  maidens,  who,  in  the  midst 
of  the  general  stupor,  were  singing  to  the  sound  of  viols,  guitars, 
and  other  instruments,  and  accompanying  their  music  by  a  rhythmic 
dance.^ 

'  Fr.  Salimbene,  Chronica.     Parma,  1S57. 


6  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Thus  did  minds  satiated  and  exhausted  by  horrors  turn  with  eager 
zest  to  the  jests  of  Basso  della  Penna,  Messer  Dolcibene,  Ribi,  and 
Gonnella,  and  to  the  painted  comedies  of  the  artist   Buffahnaco. 

At  the  return  of  May,  a  springtide  ramble  became  a  sweet  and 
pleasant  pastime,  an  occasion  for  joy  and  love  to  those  who  had  been 
so  long  confined  in  gloom  and  solitude. 

The  Sienese  chronicler,  Agnolo  di  Tura,  tells  us  that  after  the 
terrible  pestilence  of  1348,  those  who  had  escaped  the  contagion 
plunged  into  dissipations  of  all  sorts,  and  thought  of  nothing  but 
spending  and  feasting  :  "  Every  poor  man  appeared  to  be  rich,  from 
the  mere  fact  of  his  having  escaped  so  great  a  plague  ;  and  all  who 
had  survived  or  escaped  became  as  it  were  brethren  ;  each  man 
recognised  his  neighbour,  and  jested  with  him  as  with  a  kinsman, 
and  all  were  alike  absorbed  in  the  pursuit  of  pleasure."  ^ 

From  amidst  such  contrasts  as  these  the  spirit  of  art  rose  into 
being,  frank,  virginal,  immediate  ;  for  one  of  the  principal  stimulants 
of  art  is  variety,  and  of  variety,  wonder.  Fair  palaces  and  churches 
populous  with  sculptured  and  painted  figures  sprang  up  on  every 
side  ;  the  music  of  Dante  and  of  Petrarch  sounded  through  the 
land,  and  the  mirth  and  wit  of  the  age  flashed  out  in  the  novels  of 
Boccaccio  and  of  Franco  Sacchetti. 

As  the  definition  and  consolidation  of  the  Italian  States  progressed, 
and  the  consequent  growth  of  their  aristocracies  was  assured,  art 
and  culture  in  their  turn  were  established  on  a  more  stable  basis. 
Not  only  did  Rome,  Milan,  Venice,  and  Florence  rise  to  fame,  but 
Perugia,  Urbino,  Rimini,  Ferrara,  Mantua,  and  other  cities.  The 
Gonzaghi,  the  Lords  of  Montefeltro,  the  Estensi,  the  Malatesti  vied 
with  each  other,  and  even  more  emulously  with  the  popes,  the 
Medici,  the  Bentivogli,  and  the  Sforzi  in  attracting  artists  and  men 
of  letters  to  their  rcs|)ective  courts,  and  showering  honours  upon 
them  ;  in  collecting  works  of  art,  both  modern  'and  ancient,  and  in 
translorming  their  palaces  into  museums  of  pictures,  marbles,  bronzes, 
tapestries,  china,  furniture,  musical  instruments,  illuminated  books, 
medals,  and  engravings. 

'  A|i.  Muraloti,  Ker.  ital.  script  xv.  724. 


THK    REVIVAL    OK    CUl/l'URE  7 

Political  intrigue  and  military  Ijroils  were  alike  powerless  to 
distract  men's  minds  from  their  artistic  preoccupations.  The  man 
of  the  Renaissance  was  above  all  things  eclectic  and  versatile.  His 
activity  manifested  itself  in  forms  the  most  diverse.  Savage  in  war 
and  sentimental  in  love,  he  laid  aside  the  sword  for  the  pen,  writing 
sonnets  and  love-lyrics,  just  as,  upon  occasion,  his  mistress  would 
turn  from  book  and  harpsichord  to  the  government  or  defence  of  the 
state.  He  superintended  the  execution  of  works  of  art,  suggested 
motives  for  the  decoration  of  his  buildings,  drew  the  plans  of  his 
castles.  Returning  from  fields  on  which  he  had  fought  with  courage 
and  distinction,  he  retired  to  his  court  or  his  castle  to  discuss  history 
and  poetry.  As,  in  joust  or  tournament,  he  could  deal  unerring 
thrust  and  blow,  so  could  he  offer  gallant  homage  in  prose,  or  verse, 
or  sumptuous  monument. 

Sigismondo  Malatesta  commemorated  his  lawless  passion  for  Isotta 
in  the  decorations  of  the  church  at  San  Francesco  at  Rimini,  heedless 
of  the  wrathful  anathemas  of  Pius  II.  Pier  Maria  Rossi  built  two 
fortresses  in  honour  of  his  mistress,  ISianca  Pellegrini,  to  one  of 
which  he  gave  her  name,  calling  it  Roccabianca.  Occasionally  a 
lover  would  dedicate  some  splendid  chamber  to  the  memory  of  his 
passion.  Thus  the  Rossi  above  named  caused  the  various  phases  of 
his  love  to  be  illustrated  by  paintings  and  by  decorative  symbols  and 
allusions  in  the  Golden  Chamber  of  the  fortress  of  Torchiara.  Caterina 
Sforza,  the  widow  successively  of  Count  Girolamo  Riario  and  of 
Giacomo  Feo,  built  a  luxurious  nest  for  her  third  love,  Giovanni 
dei  Medici.^  These  erotic  monuments,  the  great  interest  and  im- 
portance of  which  as  illustrations  of  contemporary  manners  have  been 
somewhat  overlooked  hitherto,  were  in  the  nature  of  votive  offerings, 
shrines  constructed  in  honour  of  some  adored  person,  which  the  devotee 
sought  to  make  resplendent  as  gems. 

Such   alternations   of  passion  and  endeavour,   of  strife  and   peace, 

of  love  and  hate,  of  hard  fighting  and  pious  exercises,  were  peculiarly 

favourable  to  the  development  of  art,  which  has  invariably  reached  its 

highest  development  in  times  of  great  moral  agitation.      The  supreme 

'   Leont  Cobelli,  Croiiachc forlivesi,  p.  413.      Bologna,  1S77. 


8  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

vigour  of  the  Renaissance  was  indeed  attained  at  one  of  the  most 
fatal  and  perilous  epochs  of  Italian  history.  From  the  battle  of 
Fornovo  to  the  downfall  of  Florence,  ''the  fair  land"  was  harassed 
iiy  incessant  warfare.  Youthful  leaders  passed  away  like  meteors  in  a 
fiery  sky  ;  (iaston  de  Foix,  the  Connctable  de  Bourbon,  ("liovanni  delle 
llande  Nere,  and  the  Prince  of  Orange,  all  fell  before  the  age  of 
thirty,  at  the  very  moment  when  victory  and  military  glory  smiled  upon 
each.      While  every  family  had   its  tragedy,  every  city  its  experience 


i-f  ' 


:i^m 


^-wr^'-^sl^"-^ 


?  j^^JJ^">^^^^^JI 


'M^m 


by  Pier  Maii.T  Rossi 


of  sack  and  pillage,  pestilence  and  carnage,  Art,  gentle  and  consoling, 
went  steadily  on  its  predestined  way. 

In  no  region  of  Italy  did  the  artistic  activity  of  the  Renaissance 
fnid  more  ubiquitous  local  expression  than  in  the  territory  which 
comijrises  the;  cities  of  Bologna,  Fcrrara,  Mantua,  and  Parma. 
Wiiereas  Rome,  Milan,  Venice,  and  Florence  focused  and  concen- 
trated the  intelleclnal  life  of  a  wide  radius,  leaving  the  minor  cities 
beyond  in  a  languid  penumbra,  in  the  P^milia  evcay  little  centre  had 
a  dignified   court,  of  no  small  political  and  artistic  imjjortance. 

Leaving  out   ol   accoimt   such  lamoiis   names  as  those  of  Fste  and 


THE    BENTIVOGLI    AT    BOLOGNA  9 

Cionzaga,  because  both  families  arc  well  known  to  all  students  ol 
history,  and  further,  because  they  flourished  on  the  confines  ot  the 
Kinilia,  we  sludl  fnid  in  the  Emilia  itself  perpetual  traces  of  personali- 
ties only  less  famous  than  these,  such  as  the  Bentivogli  of  Bologna, 
a  branch  of  the  Gonzaghi  at  Novellara,  the  Torelli  at  Guastalla  and 
at  Montechiarugolo,  the  Pio  family  at  Carpi,  the  Lords  of  Correggio, 
the  Pico  family  at  Mirandola,  the  Boiardi  of  Scandiano,  the  Rossi 
of  Parma,  and  the  Pallavicini  of  Busseto  and  of  Cortemaggidre. 

Nevertheless,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the  Renaissance  in  Bologna 
failed  to  manifest  itself  with  all  the  splendour  which  might  have  been 
looked  for  in  that  rich  and  populous  city.  This  fact,  however,  was 
by  no  means  due  to  any  lack  of  initiative  or  of  intelligence  among 
her  citizens  or  rulers.  It  must  rather  be  attributed  to  that  lack  of 
internal  unity,  and  those  frequent  changes  of  go\ernment,  which 
jeopardised  liberty,  induced  perpetual  surrender  and  compromise, 
and  emasculated  independence.  So  soon  as  Bologna  found  herself 
nourishing  under  the  stable  rule  of  a  single  family  (the  Bentivoglio), 
art,  culture,  and  social  magnificence  developed  steadily  and  amply. 
Sante  and  Giovanni  II.  surrounded  themselves  with  artists  and  men 
of  letters  summoned  from  all  parts  of  Italy,  and  threw  themselves 
heart  and  soul  into  the  task  of  beautifying  the  city,  extending  streets 
and  squares,  building  palaces,  decorating  churches. 

In  Ginevra  Sforza,  the  wife  first  of  Sante  and  afterwards  of 
Giovanni  Bentivoglio,  the  love  of  art  and  perhaps  some  other  virtues 
were  choked  by  pride  and  superstition.  Whilst  youth  still  smiled 
upon  her,  and  the  star  of  her  house  was  in  the  ascendant,  she  was 
satisfied  with  the  treasure  wrung  from  the  Bolognese  to  deck  her 
dwelling  and  prepare  her  regal  feasts.  But  when  she  perceived 
the  discontent  that  was  simmering  among  the  people,  and  began 
to  dread  the  conspiracies  of  her  enemies,  she  gave  way  to  the  natural 
ferocity  of  her  disposition,  and  incited  her  own  sons  to  deeds  of 
the   most  atrocious  treachery. 

It  was,  nevertheless,  at  her  instigation  that  Sante  began,  and 
Giovanni  completed,  the  palace  which  all  contemporaries  agreed  to 
be   the   most  magnificent  specimen  of  domestic   architecture    in    Italy. 

c 


10  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

"Truly,"  exclaimed  the  historian  Alhcrti,  "this  palace  was  a  marvel, 
and  all  were  at^reed  that  it  could  not  have  cost  less  in  the  execution 
ihan  a  hundred  aw]  fifty  thousand  ducats,"  a  sum  e(|ual  in  value  to 
alxiut  six  and   a  half  million   //n\ 

Old  writers  assure  us  that  the  [)alace  contained,  besides  the  five 
great  halls  or  saloons,  two  hundred  and  forty-four  vaulted  rooms, 
gorgeous  with  tapestries,  furniture,  and   pictures  by  famous  artists. 

The  /oj^X'/"^'  which  led  from  the  third  court  to  the  garden,  was 
decorated  by  Lorenzo  Costa  with  frescoes  of  the  burning  of  Troy,  and 
I'Vancesco  Francia  adorned  Giovanni's  own  room  with  pictures  "  which 
it  was  no  over-praise  to  call  sublime."  And  it  may  be  imagined  how 
magnificent  was  the  fresco  oi  Judith  and  Holofernes,  when  we  learn 
that  Raphael  esteemed  it  so  highly  that  he  sought  diligently  for  the 
original  cartoon.  The  building  was,  in  short,  a  royal  palace,  replete 
with  every  luxury  and  Ijeauty  ;  gardens  full  of  statues,  busts,  and 
terms,  refreshed  by  fountains,  the  limpid  waters  of  which  were  brought 
from  the  hills  around  the  city  ;  stately  staircases,  cool  cloisters,  and 
grac(;ful  peristyU^s  ;  armouries,  vast  granaries,  and  lodgings  for  in- 
numerable retainers,  guards,  and  falconers.^ 

Compared  with  this  lordly  palace,  the  castle  of  the  Boiardi  at 
Scandiano  must  have  seemed  modest,  and  even  poor,  but  that  Matteo 
Maria  was  able  to  glorify  it  with  splendid  visions.-  This  great  poet 
has  a  peculiar  interest  for  us  in  the  various  points  of  contact  to  be 
lound,  both  as  artist  and  man,  between  him  and  Correggio.  He, 
like  the  [laintcr,  was  !.'entle,  quiet,  and  modest,  absorbed  in  his 
tavourite  studies,  a  creator  and  luminous  painter  of  novel  types  and 
marvellous  effects.  Tranquillity  of  .soul  and  of  surroundings  left  full 
liberty  to  thi;  soaring  flights  of  that  fancy  which  now  hovered  about 
Antonietta  Caprara,  now  followed  Orlando  and  Rinaldo,  Angelica 
and  Fiordelisa  throughout  the  mazes  of  extravagant  love  scenes  and 
chivalrous  encounttn-s.  'i'he  healthful  air  and  celebrated  wine  of  the 
hills  gave  strength   to  both   mind   and   body;  the  former  he  exercised 

1  Alhrrti,  S/oria  di  JU>loi^iui,  M.S.  i\'.  163.  Ciov.  Gozzaclini,  Mcmoric  chlla  vita  di 
aiovo/i/ii  //.  Jiai/iiVi^/i,,.      llolo-iia,  1839. 

■'  S/i«li  ill  Mallei)  Maria  Boiarda.      liolomia,  iS(i4. 


by  study,  llic  laUcr  in  ritliiig  ami  liuiuing  amoni^-  the  mountains  of 
Ivinano  and  of  Riolunato,  or  in  the  enchanting  ravine;  from  which 
the   Trcsinaro  emerges. 

In  his  art  he  was  not  onl)-  poet  Init  enthusi.ist.  It  is  recordetl  of 
him,  that  having  long  racked  his  hr.iins  in  vain  for  a  name  tor  one 
of  the  characters  in  his  Orlando  Jnnatiiorafo,  he  ordered  all  the  hells 
to  be  rimg  in  his  delight  when  the  sonorous  syllables  of  Rodaiuoilc 
suggested  themselves. 

His  solitary  life  did  not  make  him  a  misanthrope,  nor  did  constant 
metlitation  transform   him  into  a  stoic  philosopher.      He  never  lost  his 


joyous  love  of  art,  anil  his  pleasure  in  sjilendid  pageantry.  He 
appreciated  and  enjo\ed  iIk;  varied  and  vigorous  life  of  that  age, 
among  whose  worthiest  sons  we  now  reckon  him. 

He  would  often,  indeed,  descend  from  Scandiano,  and  repair 
to  neighbouring  Reggio,  or  to  Ferrara,  to  the  court  of  the  Estcnsi. 
Reggie  was  the  domicile  of  Antonietta  Caprara,  the  lady  he  so 
deeply  love<l  ;  she  caiiic  thither  during  the  reign  of  Sigismondo 
d'Este.  Approaching  the  city,  he  would  gaze  earnestly  through  the 
trees  to  catch   the  first  glimijse  of  its  towers,  his  heart  beating  wildly 


12  ANTONK)    DA    (ORREGGIO 

when  he  fancied  he  discerned  heron  her  balcony,  "  among  the  white 
marbles  and  brightly-coloured  flowers."  We  know  not  how  this 
romance  ended.  It  is  not  imlikely  that  Antonietta  was  removed 
from  Reggio. 

Our  poet  was  perhaps  not  entirely  heart-whole  when  he  offered  his 
hand  to  Taddea  dei  Gonzaghi,  of  Novellara.  But  the  time  came  when 
he  could  forget  everything  for  his  wife  She  is  described  as  having 
"eyes  that  were  small,  but  sweet  and  gentle,"  and  seems  to  have 
been  more  admired  for  the  dignity  and  distinction  of  her  person  and 
bearing  than  for  actual  beauty.  It  is  certain  that  he  loved  her  with 
a  tenderness  only  to  be  equalled  by  his  affection  for  the  children  she 
bore  him.  What  a  wealth  of  sympathy  underlies  the  following  brief 
words  :  "  My  powers  of  invention  have  been  a  good  deal  affected  of 
late,  by  reason  of  my  wife's  ill-health." 

Yet  this  just  and  "humane  man"  {noiuo  iniiaiio),  the  friend 
and  companion  of  princes,  barely  escaped  death  by  poison,  prepared 
for  his  destruction  by  his  kinsmen,  and  others  upon  whom  he  had 
heaped  benefits.  And  we  may  well  believe  that  Boiardo's  nobility 
of  soul  was  recognised  by  his  contemporaries,  when  we  learn  that 
the  would-be  perpetrators  of  the  crime  threw  themselves  on  his 
generosity,  and  that  he  exerted  himself,  first  to  obtain  commutation 
of  their  sentence,   and,   finally,   a  full  pardon. 

In  1 48 1  he  was  appointed  ducal  captain  of  Modena ;  si.x  years 
later  the  Estes  made  him  governor  of  Reggio.  His  fame,  not  alone 
as  a  poet,  but  as  a  man  rich  in  prudence  and  honesty,  procured  him 
a  warm  reception  in  the  latter  territory,  where,  though  he  had  little 
opportunity  for  the  display  of  statecraft,  he  won  universal  respect 
by  his  noble  integrity  of  character,  and  a})i)roved  himself  a  wise  and 
patriotic  guardian  of  the  city  entrusted  to  him.  He  gave  notable 
proofs  of  his  sagacity  at  the  time  of  Charles  VII  I. 's  descent  into  Italy, 
when  he  had  to  deal  with  the  double  problem  of  at  once  treating 
the  troops  with  indulgence  and  preserving  his  country  from  violence 
and    rajjine. 

The-  melancholy  caused  by  physical  sutlering  was  aggravated  in 
his  last  days  by  the  misfortunes  of  the  Italy  he  so  deeply  loved.     Long 


GIOVANNI    PICO    DELLA    MIRANDOLA 


before,  greatly  distressed  by  the  Venetian  war,  he  had  exclaimed, 
towards  the  clost;  of  the  second  part  of  his  Or/aiido  Iinianioralo  : — 

.'^Lnlciulo   Italia  di  lanicnti   i)icna 

Nun  che  ora  canti,   ma  rcspiro  apiicna.' 

He  died  in  the  same  year  as  Giovanni  Pico,  the  son  of  his  atmt 
Ciiulia,  and  the  splendid  ornament  of  another  little  Emilian  city, 
Mirandola.  Giovanni  Pico  was  no  less  remarkable  for  his  cultivated 
mind  and  prodigious  memory  than  for  the  independence  of  thought 
which  led  him,  even  in  those  days,  when  such  an  attitude  incurred 
dangers  and  difficulties  innumerable,  to  combat  the  follies  of  astrology, 
and  to  deliver  philosophy  from  the  futilities  of  the  schoolmen.  It  is 
specially  to  be  noted  that  he  challenged  a  public  disputation  in  Rome 
on  four  hundred  theses  and  five  hundred  opinions  of  his  own,  but 
the  discussion  was  prohibited  on  the  ground  that  several  of  his  theses 
were  rankly  heretical.  He,  however,  was  none  the  less  eager  to 
ventilate  them,  showing  in  the  pursuit  of  philosophy  all  that  zeal 
which  was  wanting  in  his  administrative  policy.  It  was,  no  doubt, 
the  sense  of  his  own  unfitness  which  led  him  to  renounce  that  place 
which  belonged  to  him  by  right  in  the  State,  thus  escaping  the  fury 
of  the  perfidious  Galeotto, 
which  vented  itself  in  double 
measure  on  his  brother  An- 
tonio, the  father  of  that  Vio- 
lante  who  married  Giberto 
da  Correggio. 

A     strain    of    originality, 
bordering    on    the    fantastic, 

distinguished  all  the  members  of  this  cultured  family.  Lucrezia  Pico, 
wife  of  Count  Claudio  Rangoni  of  Modena  (another  patron  of  learning, 
eulogised  by  Bernardo  Tasso,  Bandello,  and  Aretino),  was  a  passionate 
admirer  of  sacred  oratory,  and  like  the  Countess  of  Guastalla, 
had  dreams  of  the  perfectibility  of  the  human  race.  She  is 
remarkable  as  the  authoress  of  a  letter  in  defence  of  her  sex,  which 
gives  her  a  place  among  the  pioneers  of  those  who  uphold  the  rights  of 

'   Hearing  the  lamentations  of  Italy,  how  should  I  sing,  who  can  scarcely  breathe  ? 


14  ANTONIO    DA    CORRECOIO 

women.  Culture  of  the  most  serious  and  solid  quality  distinguished 
Gian  Francesco,  who  was  permitted  to  govern  in  consideration  of 
having  sworn  fealty  to  Julius  1 1.,  assailant  and  conqueror  of  Miran- 
dola.  He  was  gentle,  honest,  and  pious,  wrote  a  number  of  Latin 
theses  on  a  variety  of  questions,  and  frequently  attacked  the  doctrines 
of  Aristotle,  defending  the  memory  of  Savonarola,  and,  like  his 
famous  uncle,  ridiculing  the  contemporary  belief  in  witchcraft  and 
kindred  superstitions.  To  be  brief,  it  may  be  said  of  him  that  his 
nobility  of  soul  equalled  the  loftiness  of  his  genius  ;  but  such  qualities 
did  not  avail  to  save  him  from  the  ferocity  of  one  of  his  nephews, 
who  murdered  him  at  the  foot  of  a  crucifix.  He  left  a  son,  Gian 
Tommaso,  who  in  his  turn  sought  consolation  for  his  misfortunes  in 
the  pursuit  of  letters.  Lilio  Gregorio  Giraldi  was  long  a  sojourner 
at  his  Court. 

The  neighbouring  city  of  Carpi,  close  to  Correggio,  was  distin- 
guished by  no  less  magnificence.  Its  splendour  was  mainly  due  to 
the  Pio  family,  who  reigned  there  from  13 19  onwards,  ornamenting 
it  with  churches  and  palaces,  and  encircling  it  with  walls.  Its 
prosperity  was  at  its  zenith  during  the  youth  of  our  painter,  under 
the  sway  of  Alberto  Pio,  whose  mother  was  sister  to  the  famous 
Giovanni  Pico,  of  whom  we  have  spoken.'  Left  an  orphan  in  his 
infancy,  his  cousin  Marco  acted  as  regent  during  his  minority, 
eventually  attempting  to  oust  him  altogether  from  the  government  of 
the  State,  and  secure  it  to  himself.  All  Marco's  energies  were  therefore 
directed  to  the  philosophic,  literary,  and  artistic  culture  of  his  young 
kinsman.  Among  the  tutors  he  gave  him  was  Aldo  Manuzio  the 
elder. 

But  Alberto's  practical  talents  soon  manifested  themselves,  even 
amidst  the  preoccupations  of  humanistic  studies.  He  speedily  rose  to 
eminence,  and  found  himself  sought  out  by  statesmen,  and  concerned 
in  grave  political  questions.  Marco's  schemes  proved  abortive.  This, 
however,  is  certain — that  Alberto's  delight  in  art  and  letters  fully 
compensated  him   for  his   political  troubles.      It  does  not  come  within 

'  11.  .Sl.-iii|)lt,  F.  O.  Sc1)u1/.c  and  \V.  liartli.  Carpi.  Ein  Fiiislciisitz  do- Renaissance 
(Dresden,  18S2). 


ALBERTO    PIO    DI    CARPI  15 

the  scope  of  the  present  work  to  recount  the  vicissitudes  of  his  career 
as  a  ruler.  Our  oliject  I^eing  merely  to  show  the  degree  of  culture 
attained  in  the  Kniilia  at  the  time  of  Correggio,  we  may  pass  over  his 
attempts  to  conciliate  Louis  XII.  and  the  Emperor  Maximilian,  and 
dwell  only  on  that  part  of  his  policy  which  had  for  its  object  the 
prosperity   of  his   city. 

He  raised  many  remarkable  buildings,  among  others  the  Church 
of  -St.  Nicolo,  from  the  designs  of  Baldassare  Peruzzi  of  Siena,  who 
also  furnished  the  plans  of  the  cathedral  which  Alberto  began.  In 
I  504  he  beautified  his  gigantic  palace  by  the  addition  of  a  splendid 
inner  court,  adorned  with  sculptures.  Two  years  later  he  introduced 
the  art  of  printing  into  Carpi,  placing  it  under  the  management  of  a 
famous  typographer,  Benedetto  Dolcibelli,  after  having  first  invited 
Aide,  who  was  desirous  of  forming  a  literary  centre  for  the  production 
of  new  editions  of  the  classics.  Meanwhile  he  added  a  library  to 
San  Nicolo,  and  formed  another  for  himself,  mainly  by  the  acquisition 
of  Giorgio  Valla's  collection.  In  1509  he  obtained  a  concession  from 
the  Emperor  Maximilian,  empowering  him  to  coin  gold,  silver,  and 
copper  money.  He  rebuilt  the  church  of  S.  Maria  della  Rosa,  restored 
the  walls  of  Carpi,  and  strengthened  them  with  bastions.  As  may 
be  supposed,  he  sought  out  and  favoured  men  of  letters,  among  the 
latter  Sigismondo  Santi,  Barigazzi,  Carlini,  Francesco  Coccapani,  and 
that  Trifone   Bisanti   so  much  esteemed   by  Ariosto. 

But  though  Marco's  care  for  Albert's  education  had  been  directed 
mainly  to  unfitting  him  for  the  guidance  of  the  State,  he  did  not  neglect 
that  of  his  own  children.  His  daughter  Emilia,  in  particular,  who  Went 
to  Urbino  as  the  wife  of  Antonio  da  Montefeltro,  was  eulogised  by 
Bernardo  Castiglione  in  his  Cortigiano  as  a  model  of  culture  and 
refinement.  The  valiant  and  unfortunate  Gian  Marsiglio  Pio  also 
found  solace  in  letters,  and  himself  related  the  story  of  his  woes  in 
verse. 

Near  Carpi,  and  therefore  near  Correggio,  with  which  we  shall 
deal  more  particularly  further  on,  two  other  small  cities  rose  to  fame, 
and  may  claim  their  share  of  glory  in  the  intellectual  movement  of 
the   day.      These   were    Guastalla  and    Novellara. 


t6  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

At  Novellara  we  find  the  wise,  humane,  and  pious  Francesco 
(ionzaga,  the  frieml  of  Saint  Bernardino  of  Siena,  who  visited  him 
at  his  Court.  P'rancesco  Ijusied  himself  with  improvements  of  all 
kinds,  and  added  many  fine  buildings  to  his  city.  A  man  of  wide  and 
tolerant  mind,  he  permitted  Jews  to  settle  in  his  dominions.  Among 
the  more  brilliant  members  of  his  house  were  his  wife,  Costanza 
Strozzi,  the  granddaughter  of  a  famous  poet,  and  his  fair  daughter 
Camilla,  beautiful  in  person  as  in  mind,  who  herself  wrote  graceful 
verses,  and    fascinated   Molza   and   Casio,  who  both   wrote  enthusiasti- 


cally in  her  praise.     She  went  shortly  afterwards  to  Vicenza  as  the 
wife  of  Count  Alessandro  da   Porto. 

The  Torelli  were  meanwhile  ruling  in  Guastalla.  Achille  certainly 
did  not  shine  as  a  beneficent  prince.  Even  his  wife,  the  sweet  and 
gentle  Veronica  Pallavicino,  had  no  softening  influence  on  his  violent, 
vicious,  and  despicable  character.  Yet  even  he  was  desirous  of 
emulating  the  princely  munificence  of  his  neighbours,  and  began  the 
building  of  a  splendid  palace,  which  was  completed  by  the  Gonzaghi. 
His  daughter  Ludovica  is  a  strange  and  interesting  figure  in  the 
history  of  the  times,  a  curious  mixture  of  vices  and    virtues.      Rich, 


I,UI)()\'ICA     l-ORI'-JLI  17 

generous,  enterprising,  licentious,  capricious,  she  was  famous  for  her 
masculine  intellect  and  superb  beauty,  her  virulent  hatreds,  and  no 
less  violent  affections.  Upheld  by  the  Guastallese,  she  crushed  the 
innumerable  plots  hatched  against  her  power,  finally  selling  her 
state  to   Ferrante  Gonzaoa,  the  highest   bidder.' 


The  ill-disposed  declared  that  the  good  and  evil  in  her  were  alike 
disastrous  in  their  results.  Lodovico  Castelvetro  gives  a  curious 
account  of  her  fantastic  interpretation  of  the  platonic  philosophy  in  its 
bearing  on  the  relations  of  the  sexes.  He  may  perhaps  have 
exaggerated.      It  is    certain,  however,    that   while,  on   the  one  hand, 

1  t;.  B.  Bonamati,  htoria  chlla  Citta  di  Giias/al/a.      (Parnia,  1674.) 


i8  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

she  was  occupied  with  schemes  for  the  perfection  of  the  race,  on  the 
other,  she  had  her  rooms  decorated  with  unseemly  pictures,  delighted 
in  licentious  literature,  and  was  greatly  addicted  to  hunting,  dancing, 
and    "  every  kind  of  worldliness." 

Later  we  find  her  suddenly  converted,  as  so  often  happens  in  the 
case  of  women  whose  youth  has  been  stormy.  All  her  eccentric 
energy  now  found  an  outlet  in  religious  exercises.  She  burnt  her 
books  of  romance  and  poetry,  destroyed  her  obscene  pictures, 
renounced  balls,  concerts,  and  everything  in  which  she  had  once 
delighted,  and  gave  herself  up  to  the  most  rigorous  manifesta- 
tions of  penitence.  She  had  her  hair  cut  into  the  form  of  a 
cross,  and  clothed  herself  in  strange  garments  that  provoked  the 
mirth  and  gibes  of  spectators.  But  the  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  was 
still  throbbing  within  her.  She  built  the  fine  church  of  S.  Paolo  in 
Milan,  was  lavish  alike  in  works  of  mercy  and  donations  of  art 
treasures,  and  founded  an  institution  for  noble  maidens  reduced  to 
poverty. 

Other  Torelli  are  to   be  met  with  higher  up   the  Enza,  among  the 

turreted   buildings    of    Montechiarugolo,   whence    issued    Barbara,   the 

flower   of  beauty  and  culture,  and   whither  came,  about    1500, 

la  nutrita 

Daniigella  Triviilzio  al  sacro  speco.^ 

In  this  passage  Ariosto  compliments  the  wife  of  Francesco  Torelli 
on  her  training  in  the  sacrtxl  retreat  of  the  Muses  ;  Jacopo  Caviceo 
further  declares  her  to  have  been  learned  in  Greek  and  Latin,  and 
Nicola  Pacediano  tells  us  she  excelled  as  a  singer.  Her  absorption 
in  such  studies  did  not,  however,  prevent  her  from  dealing  very 
competently  with  affairs  of  state  in  her  husband's  absence,  nor  from 
giving  cUie  attention  to  those  of  her  family.- 

On  the  banks  of  the  Arda,  in  the  valley  of  Piacenza,  on  a  spot 
when;  a  cluster  of  poor  hovels  had  grouped  themselves  together  and 
adopted  the  name  Cortemaggiore,   Gian   Lodovico   Pallavicino  settled 

'    Orhoido  Fiin'oso,  xlvi.  4. 

-  Amadio  Ronchini,  DamixM,  Triviilzio  Torelli.  {At/i  <■  nwmorie  ddk  R.  R. 
JJcfiiihizioni  di  s/oria  patria  dell'  Emilia.)  New  series,  vol.  vii.,  I'ail  2,  y.  229. 
(Modena,  1882.) 


THE    TALLAVKTM  19 

in  1479  with  II  few  families  from  Busseto,  and  erected  a  fortress, 
the  nucleus  of  this  territory,  in  which  afterwards  rose  the  magnifi- 
cent churches  of  the  Annunziata  and  of  Santa  Maria  della  Nativita 
delle  Grazie.  Gian  Lodovico's  son  Orlando,  called  "  The  Hunch- 
back" —  "illustrious  for  his  learning  and  his  saintly  manners" 
—carried  on  the  paternal  tradition,  extending  and  beautifying  his 
domain  by  the  erection  of  buildings  with  /oo-ou'^  and  the  laying  out  of 
open  spaces.  He  finished  the  church  his  father's  piety  had  begun, 
founded  the  confraternity  of  the   Misericordia,  installed  the  Minorites 


in  the  Annunziata,  and  presented  it  with  a  library.  He  further  added 
a  chapel  to  their  temple,  which  was  afterwards  decorated  by  Por- 
denone,  and  in  1502  he  summoned  Benedetto  Dolcibelli  from  Carpi 
to  set  up  a  printing-press  for  books. ^ 

Such,  to  say  nothing  of  many  others,  were  the  persons  who 
nourished  in  the  Emilia  shortly  before  the  birth  of  Correggio  and 
throughout  his  life.  To-day,  alas  !  the  wanderer  who  passes  through 
the  little  cities  we  have  described  is  oppressed  by  a  sense  of  deep 
melancholy.     Their  streets  are   silent  and  deserted  ;   every  memorial 

1   Ircneo  Affb,  Mciitoru  df::^!i  so-itlori pannigiani,  vol.  iii,,  y.  72.     (Parma,  1791.) 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


of  glory,  every  trace  of  splendour  has  vanished.  Mournfully  he  calls 
up  visions  of  the  past,  dwelling  on  the  days  when  so  many  princes, 
poets,  and  artists  thought  and  laboured  in  the  cause  of  culture,  and 
when  the  most  gifted  flocked  thither  to  admire  and  be  admired, 
forming    such    ideal    consistories  as  those  pictured    by  Dante   in    his 

description  of  Limbo,  or 
by  Raphael  in  his  Sc/iool 
of  Athens. 

How  glorious  was 
that  spiritual  spring-time  ! 
While,  on  the  one  hand, 
Francia  and  his  scholars 
were  multiplying  their 
sweet  conceptions  of  the 
Virgin  Mother  in  the 
city  of  the  Bentivogli,  its 
University  harboured  the 
subtle  and  learned  Eras- 
mus of  Rotterdam,  and 
Copernicus  discussed  the 
new  astronomical  lore  with 
Novara  within  its  walls. 
From  his  professorial 
chair,  Pomponaccio  sug- 
gested those  experimental 
essays  which  gave  such 
"  a  mighty  impetus  to 
natural  science."    At  Fer- 

TOMb    ..,.    THE    rALLAVKINl    AT   COKTEMAGC...K.:.  XdX^i,  LodOvIcO  ArlOStO 

gave  rein  to  that  noble 
and  ])rolific  fancy  which  created  the  Homeric  conflicts  of  Rinaldo 
and  Ruggero,  and  the  terrific  frenzy  of  Orlando,  weaving  into 
his  marvellous  poem  the  figures  to  which  Boiardo  had  already 
given  life.  Antonio  Tebaldeo  trained  the  intelligent  scions  of  the 
house  of  Kste  in  all   the  refinements  of  literary   knowledge,  the  most 


LOVE    OF    ART    IN    ITALY  21 

brilliant  of  his  pupils  being,  perhaps,  that  Isabella,  whose  versatile 
genius  and  fascinating  grace  became  the  glory  of  the  Mantuan 
Court,  where  Mantegna,  Lorenzo  Costa,  and  Giulio  Romano  shone 
successively,  where  Bernardo  Tasso  found  poetic  inspiration,  and 
Baldassarre  Castiglione  his  perfect  type  of  the  high-born  lady. 

It  was  an  age  marked  by  a  magnificent  outburst  of  thought  and 
fancy;  by  a  long  series  of  victories  in  the  domain  of  art  and  science  ; 
by  a  superb  efiflorescence  of  positive  truths,  and  poetic  creations 
hanlly  less  real  and  vital  ;  by  a  sumptuous  gallantry  of  manners 
never  before  imagined  ;  by  a  scrupulous  care  of  the  person,  which 
manifested  itself  in  the  wearing  of  rich  and  beautiful  apparel,  and 
in  the  study  of  a  decorous  and  classic  fitness  of  bearing,  appropriate 
to  every  kind  of  pageantry,  to  pastimes,  tournaments,  and  martial 
conflicts.  Hundreds  of  artists  laboured  for  the  satisfaction  of  this 
refined  elegance.  Everywhere  were  to  be  found  architects,  painters, 
sculptors,  medallists,  goldsmiths,  weavers  of  silk  and  arras,  armoLU'ers, 
potters,  musicians,  men  of  letters,  jesters,  and  buffoons. 

The  universal  passion  for  art  became  so  strong  and  all-powerful 
that  it  permeated  every  action,  and  found  expression  even  in  the  most 
dramatic  moments  of  life.  Fieravante  worked  in  Bologna  at  the 
palace  of  the  Anziani  while  besiegers  were  bombarding  the  city  and 
bringing  down  great  blocks  of  stone  in  the  piazza.  Forgetful  of  his 
own  danger,  his  one  fear  was  the  destruction  of  the  building  he 
was  labouring  to  adorn. ^ 

In  the  ruthless  war  waged  upon  him  by  his  more  powerful 
neighbours,  the    Sforzi,  Pier 

Maria  Rossi  lost  castle  after  ^  ■•     - 

castle     and      territory     after  /:'        -'jr-m  *^ 

territory.      Old,    feeble,    and         /'/       ^     /f  \       ^     /' 

broken,     he     became     hope-  f  — >  ■'^  '  \ 

lessly  infirm  at  San  Secondo.  ~ '^j^^>>/ 

In  his  fallen  state  he  asked  medal  of  iiek  maria  k, 

to    be    carried    thirty    kilo- 
metres  in   a    litter,   to  that    fortress   of    Torchiara  he    had   built   from 
1  Archivio  storico  delF  arte,  vol.  iv.,  \^\^.  104-105.     (Rome,  1891.) 


22  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

his  own  designs,  and  to  be  placed  in  the  Golden  Chamber,  where 
he  had  Hved  and  loved  with  Bianca  Pellegrini,  and  where  her  image 
looked  down  upon  him  from  walls  and  ceilings.  There,  lulled  by 
those  images  of  love  and  beauty,  he  closed  his  eyes  upon  the 
world.  ^ 

Reviled  and  anathematised  by  his  citizens,  and  hunted  down  by 
Julius  II.,  a  pope  who  had  more  faith  in  the  temporal  than  in  the 
spiritual  sword,  Giovanni  Bentivoglio  fled  from  Bologna,  with  his  wife 
and  children.  The  former  took  refuge  at  Busseto,  near  Parma  ;  the 
others  dispersed  in  various  directions. 

The  unhappy  couple  bore  up  heroically  under  their  misfortunes, 
the  ruin  of  their  power,  and  the  downfall  of  their  dynasty.  But  a  final 
calamity  was  reserved  for  them. 

Ercole  Marescolti,  inflamed  with  a  ferocious  joy  in  that  hour  of 
vengeance,  led  the  mob  upon  the  palace  of  the  Bentivogli,  his 
uplifted  sword  in  one  hand,  a  bundle  of  wood  in  the  other,  inciting 
them  to  the  destruction  of  the  splendid  building.  His  rallying  cry 
was  this  :  "  To  prevent  the  vulture's  return,  we  must  destroy  his 
nest."  Eager  for  pillage,  the  crowd  followed  him  gladly,  and  the 
work  of  destruction  was  continued  for  an  entire  month,  until  the 
whole  was  reduced  to  a  smouldering  heap  of  ruins.  When 
Giovanni,  who  was  then  seventy  years  old,  heard  the  news,  he 
bowed  the  proud  head  which  nothing  else  had  bent.  The  tears 
dimmed  his  eyes.  All  was  over  for  him,  since  his  enemies  had 
plucked  away  from  him  even  his  dream  of  artistic  glory,  leaving 
nothing  to  bear  witness  to  the  splendour  of  his  house.  He  wrote  to 
his  wife,  upbraiding  her  for  his  ruin,  and  causing  her  such  anguish 
that  she  died  of  the  shock,  if,  indeed,  she  did  not  strangle  herself,  as 
some  writers  have  asserted.- 


'  A.  rezzana,  Sloria  Ji  Paniia,  vol.  iv.,  p.  291.  (Parma,  1852.)  At  ]3.  300;  The 
luritcr  who  continued  the  Chronicle  of  Giovanni  del  Giudice  relates  that  Pier  Maria's 
body  7vas  embalmed,  and  placed  in  a  sitting  posture  in  the  Golden  Chamber  of  the  fortress 
of  Torchiara,  attired  in  a  habit  of  g^olden  brocade,  and  that  it  remained  there  for  a 
long  time. 

2  Giov.  (iozzadini,  op.  cil.,  and  JJi  alaiiii  avvcnimeiiti  in  Bologna  c  nelp  Emilia  dal 
1506  al  151 1,  I'art  i.     Jiologna,  1SS6. 


LOVE    OF   ART    IN    ITALY  23 

Parmigianino,  anotluT  Archimedes,  worked  quietly  away  wliile  the 
sack  of  Rome  was  raging  round  him.  The  astonished  Lanzknechts 
surprised  him  in  his  studio  painting  a  group  of  smiHng  children.^ 

Even  in  the  most  impassioned  moments,  when  men  are  naturally 
prone  to  forget  all  adventitious  things,  the  love  of  the  beautiful 
manifested  itself  side  by  side  with  the  more  tender  emotions. 
Federico  Catanei  relates  that  when  Francesco  Maria  della  Rovere, 
Duke  of  Urbino,  went  to  Mantua  to  meet  Eleanor  Gonzaga,  the  bride 
who  had  been  married  to  him  by  proxy,  he  put  his  arm  about  her 
neck,  and  kissed  her  in  the  presence  of  the  whole  Court,  then  con- 
ducted her  to  a  seat,  and  "discoursed  with   her  of  painting."- 

Biit  this  spiritual  Hame,  which  blazed  in  so  many  hearts  and  so 
many  cities,  was  not  destined  to  burn  for  long.  By  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century  it  had  died  down  on  many  altars,  and  on  many 
others  had  begun  to  flicker  and  languish.  Thus,  upon  the  hills  that 
rise  along  the  Emilian  highway  may  be  seen,  on  the  evening  of 
some  festival,  a  thousand  lights  sparkling  amidst  thousands  of  joyful 
acclamations.  At  hrst  they  burn  in  close  and  vivid  clusters  ;  gradually 
they  become  more  scattered  and  less  brilliant  ;  presently,  only  an 
occasional  glimmer  strikes  the  eye  ;  and  finally  night  sinks  upon 
darkness  and  silence. 

1  Giorgio  Vasari,  Le  vite  dei  pii)  eccdlciiti  pi/tori,  sciiltori  eJ  architetti  :  a  ana  di 
Gaetano  Milaiiesi,  vol.  v.,  p.  225.     (Florence,  18S0.) 

"-  A.  Luzio  and  R.  Renier,  Mantova  c  Urhino :  Isabella  d' Esh-  c  Elhahetta  Gonzag^a, 
p.  187.     (Turin,  1893.) 


Parma  ) 


CHAPTER   11 

THE    BIRTH    OF   CORREGGIO 

IHE    LORDS    OF    CORREGGIO— THE    ALLEGRI    FAMILY    ANU    THKIR    SOCIAL    STATUS. 

ANTONIO  ALLEGRI, 
commonly  known  as  Cor- 
reggio,  was  worthy  of 
the  iortune  which  decreed  his 
birth  in  the  fair  region  we  have 
described,  at  the  most  brilliant 
period  of  the  Renaissance.  To 
understand  the  nature  of  his 
genius  and  his  character  we 
must  endeavour  to  re-create  his 
environment,  and  recompose  that 
"historic  atmosphere"  in  which 
his  birth  and  development  took 
place,  and  in  which  his  life-work 
was  accomplished. 
By  some  he  has  been  most  unjustly  represented  as  an  isolated 
phenomenon   in   art,   and   a   melancholy  misanthri)i)e   by   nature.      This 


lilOGRAPHICAI.    FALLACIES  25 

misconception  was  due,  not  only  to  impciicct  knowledge,  but  [)erhaps 
in  a  still  greater  degree  to  the  old  i)iographical  methods,  which 
loved  to  represent  those  whose  mental  stature  was  above  that  of  the 
herd  as  living  in  a  world  apart,  and  divorced  from  all  participation 
in  the  life  around  them.  '  Falling  into  an  opposite  extreme  to  that 
of  the  classic  writers  who  imputed  human  weaknesses  to  their  gods, 
they  insisted  on  treating  their  heroes  as  privileged  beings,  unaffected 
by  those  passions  which  governed  the  actions  of  their  fellow-mortals. 
Biographers,  poets,  and  romancers  in   fact  treated  them   much  as  did 


the  sculptors  who  reproduced  their  forms  and  features  in  marble. 
They  placed  them  on  isolated  pedestals,  almost  as  if  they  alone 
had  lived  at  a  given  time  and  place  ;  and  only  when  impelled  by 
the  hard  necessities  of  narrative,  did  they  record  that  certain  persons 
moved  in  the  same  orbit  as  their  heroes,  and  participated  to 
some  extent,  if  not  in  their  lofty  genius,  at  least  in  their  habits  and 
sentiments. 

At  thc!  best,  exceptions  have  been  made  to  this  method  of  treatment 
in  the  case  of  women  beloved  by  great  men  ;  but  even  here  it  has  been 
thought  essential  to  improve  upon   realities.      Thus,  many  a  petulant 

E 


26  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

damsel,  and  many  a  humble  maiden,  perhaps  all  unconscious  of  their 
mission  as  inspiring  Muses,  have  been  converted  into  ideal  figures, 
symbolic  types  of  virtue  and  intellect,  modelled  on  the  pattern  of  a 
Beatrice  or  a  Laura.  If  the  great  artists  of  the  Renaissance  could 
make  themselves  heard  in  exposition  of  their  own  life-romances,  who 
can  say  what  they  might  reveal  to  us  of  the  perplexities  and  vexations 
in  which  their  womenkind  had  involved  them,  or  how  many  romantic 
inventions  would  melt  into  air  !  Raphael  would  assure  us,  no  doiibt, 
that  his  love  for  the  Fornarina  was  a  sentimental  fable,  and  Andrea 
del  Sarto  would  sigh  forth  his  conviction  that  the  lovely  Lucrezia 
del  Fede  was  a  termagant ! 

The  isolating  process  has  been  perhaps  more  severely  applied  to 
Correggio  than  to  any  other  Italian  artist.  He  has  hitherto  been 
described  as  a  genius  whose  spontaneous  development  was  accom- 
plished without  the  aid  of  masters,  the  encouragement  of  friends, 
the  support  of  patrons  ;  lonely  as  Adam  before  he  was  given  the 
companion  who  lost  him  his  Paradise,  or  as  Saladin  in  Dante's  Limbo  ! 

Some  indeed  have  gone  so  far  as  to  assert  that  "  Correggio 
belonged  to  a  humble  peasant  family  of  a  lonely  and  remote  district 
in  Lombardy,  and  grew  up  without  any  instruction  in  his  art."  A 
lady  whose  imposing  volume  on  Correggio  has  received  the  honours  of 
translation  states  that  the  artist  first  saw  the  light,  "  far  from  the 
brilliant  and  multiform  world  of  his  day,  in  an  obscure  village  of 
the   I'Imilia."  ^ 

The  city  of  Correggio  was  certainly  no  such  humble  and  poverty- 
stricken  hamlet  in  the  days  of  Antonio  Allegri,  even  to  judge  from 
the  accounts  of  Tirabosrhi,-  Pungileoni,^  and  other  biographers  down 
to  Meyer,  whose  work  on  Correggio  is  the  most  valuable  of  the 
series.''     And  we  may  venture  to  say  that  these  writers,  in  spite  of  the 


1  Marghcrita  Albana  Mignaty,  J.a  vita  c  Ic  opar  del  Ccr/ri^g/n,  chap.  xi.  Paris, 
1 88 1,  and  Florence,  i8S8. 

■-  Girolamo  Tiraboschi,  BihliokLa  Modciicst-,  vol.  vi.  Modena.  1786.  biographical 
sketch  of  Correggio,  ]ip.  234-302. 

■■'  Luigi  Pungilconi,  M^t-moric  istoridic  di  Anloiiio  Allt-;^ri,  delta  il  Carreggia.  'IMiree 
vols.     Parma,  1817-1821. 

■I  Julius  Meyer,  Carreggia.      Leipzig,  1S71. 


THl'     LORDS    OK    CORRIXJOrlO  27 

abundant  sources  oi'  information  at  their  disposal,  were  unwilling  or 
unable  to  profit  by  their  advantages  so  far  as  to  establish  the  im- 
portance of  the  Court  of  Correggio,  and  the  intellectual  activity  of 
its  territory,  factors  in  themselves  amply  sufficient  to  promote  and 
foster  the  growth  of  genius. 

A  house  such  as  that  of  the  Correggeschi,  who  had  been 
established  in  the  city  from  about  a.d.  iooo,  who,  after  consolidating 
their  power  internally,  had  extended  it  into  the  neighbouring  territory, 
and  whose  political  sagacity  and  military  prowess  had  made  them 
for  a  time  the  masters  of  Parma  and  Guastalla,  is  not  likely 
to  have  been  sunk  in  poverty  and  obscurity  at  the  period  of  greatest 
intellectual  vigour  the  state  had  known,  nor  to  have  suffered  itself 
to  be  completely  eclipsed  by  other  families  flourishing  at  the  various 
Italian  courts  in  its  immediate  vicinity.  We  find,  in  fact,  that  while 
the  daughters  of  the  Correggeschi  were  sought  in  marriage  by  the 
Scaligeri,  the  Carrari,  the  Boiardi, 

etc.,     their     sons     found     wives         rMffi-BFi»?''i^gy^'.^yii 
among    the    Visconti,    the    Gon-  y.'.!''' "^^  ■         ', ' ''    " 

zaghi,  the  Estensi,  the   Rangoni,       r^'-^,./  ^'V"'  •    ■ 

and  many  others  no  less  famous.         fv'.  ,  ,    ~T~. •     J 

Throughout  the  course  of  two        ii|'/' ^  '         ,- 

centuries  the  power  of  the  Cor-       „i'^, 

reggeschi  had  been  built  up  with        "  .    .;  rr^. 

commendable  valour  and  energy; 

but  it  was  not  until  the  beginning        '^■^■■"al  m.  a  "'-'^^^^  ^^  ''■  "■^^^'~|_"'^"  '"  '-'"'■■■" 
of   the  fourteenth  century,  when 

Giberto  was  proclaimed  Lord  of  Parma,  that  their  achievements 
culminated,  and  won  a  place  in  history.  It  is  true  that  Giberto  did 
not  long  retain  his  grasp  on  the  new  state,  for  that  perilous  and 
stormy  age  was  unfavourable  to  stable  and  enduring  forms  of  govern- 
ment. That  he  was  not  lacking  in  courage  we  may  gather  from 
the  fact  that  after  his  expulsion  by  the  Guelfs,  he  shortly  returned 
to  the  city,  regaining  a  temporary  dominion  in  the  intervals  of  fierce 
struggles  with  the  Rossi  and  Sanvitali.  It  was  during  one  of  these 
brief  spells  of  victory  that  he  gained  the  battle  of  1341,  celebrated   b)- 


28  ANTONIO    HA    CORRRGGIO 

Petrarch  in  one  of  his  Cairsoni.  Giberto  had  made  the  poet's 
acquaintance  at  Avignon,  and  afterwards  bestowed  an  archdeaconry 
upon  him,  in  recognition  of  which  favour  Petrarch  dedicated  the 
treatise  Dc  remediis  iitriusqite  for'tuntr  to  him.  His  subsequent  sale  of 
Parma  to  the  Visconti  is  certainly  a  somewhat  inglorious  passage  in 
the  story  of  his  career ;  but  such  traffic  in  cities  and  subjects  was 
common  in  those  days,  and  it  W'Ould  be  unjust,  in  this  age  of  higher 
and  purer  standards  of  political  morality,  to  regard  it  as  an  indelible 
stain  upon  his  character.  Parma  had  her  compensation  two  centuries 
later,  when  Correggio  sent  her  him  the  splendour  of  whose  art  atoned 
for  ancient  bitternesses. 

By  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  house  of  the  Correg- 
geschi  had  become  powerful,  no  less  by  its  own  prowess  than  by 
virtue  of  the  protection  it  enjoyed  from  various  great  princes  and 
sovereigns. 

Borso,  a  man  of  war  and  of  counsel,  who  acted  as  captain  for  a 
variety  of  great  nobles,  was  wounded  at  Argenta,  fighting  for  the 
Estensi  against  the  Venetians  He  then  went  as  envoy  from  Lodovico 
il  Moro  to  Matthias  King  of  Hungary,  and  was  his  counsellor  in 
1484. 

Giberto,  Borso's  brother,  was  in  his  turn  protected  by  the 
Venetians,  who  admitted  him  into  the  league  they  had  made  with 
the  Duke  of  Milan,  Florence,  and  Ferrara  against  the  Pope  and  the 
King  of  Naples.  He  was  therefore  compelled  in  147S  to  take 
arms  against  .Sixtus  IV.  in  Tuscany,  on  the  occasion  of  the  Pazzi 
conspiracy. 

These  two  illustrious  soldiers,  Borso  and  Giberto,  ruled  the 
destinies  of  Correggio  in  1494,  the  supposed  birth-year  of  Antonio 
Allegri.  We  have  no  definite  proofs  of  the  authenticity  of  this  date  ; 
but  the  indirect  evidences  of  a  number  of  documents  combine  to  attest 
it.  Almost  every  biographer  of  the  painter's  who  has  accepted  it, 
from  Ratti  downwards,  relied  unhesitatingly  upon  the  mural  inscription 
under  the  outer  portico  of  the  monastery  of  San  Francesco  at 
Correggio.  This  positively  declares  that  the  jjainter  died  in  1534  at 
the  age  of  forty  ;  but  we  know  that  the  inscription    itself  dates   only 


DAri'    OF    rORRRGGTOS    RTR'I'H  29 

from  1647,  when  it   was  cut   at   the  expense  of  one   (lirolamo  Conti,  a 
doctor  of  laws,  living-  in  Rome.' 

It  should  be  observed  that  the  framer  of  the  inscription  states 
as  a  fact  what  Vasari  assumes  with  a  certain  amount  of  hesitation. 
Correggio,  says  the  latter,  died  "  at  the  age  of  about  forty."  Various 
documents  hearing  on  the  subject,  however,  almost  certainly  point  to 
1494  as  the  year  of  the  artist's  birth,  and  hence  we  may  not  unreason- 
ably suppose  that  Vasari  had  some  sufficient  grounds  for  his 
assumi)tion,  which  he  based  perhaps  on  the  statement  of  some  one 
who  had  known  the  painter  in  Parma,  perhaps  on  its  general  accept- 
ance in  his  day.  The  mere  fact  that  no  confirmatory  document  is 
now  extant  cannot  be  held  sufficient  to  discredit  his  testimony. 
Girolamo  Gualdo,  in  a  description  of  the  Garden  of  Clia  Giiaido,  says 
that  Allegri  died  at  the  age  of  forty  ;  but  he  evidently  repeats  the 
statement  of  Vasari. - 

The  indirect  proofs  which  incline  us  to  accept  what  we  may  call  the 
traditional  date  are  to  be  found  in  two  documents,  one  of  August  30, 
1514,  the  other  of  February  i,  1519."  In  the  latter  Correggio  is 
described  as  cgnj^io  ct  discrcto  juvcnc,  a  term  then  generally  applied 
to  a  man  who  had  not  yet  passed  his  twenty-fifth  year.  The  deduction 
would,  of  course,  be  of  little  value  without  further  support.  But  in 
the  first  of  the  two  documents,  a  deed  engaging  Correggio  to  execute 
the  picture  now  in  the  Dresden  Gallery  for  the  convent  of  San  Fran- 
cesco, the  youthful  painter  pledges  himself  to  perform  the  work 
"  cut//  consensu  cms  pafris  piYcsciifisy  *      He  was  therefore  a  minor. 

It  may  be  urged  that  the  testimony  of  these  two  documents  also 
admits  of  the  further  contention  that  Correggio  was  born  after  1494. 
But,  as  we  shall  see,  the  quality  of  the  very  work  under  discussion 
precludes  such  an  idea  ;  it  is  sufficiently  astonishing  that  the  picture 
should  have  been  painted  by  a  youth  of  barely  twenty. 

On  the   other   hand,   we    learn   that  he   was   present   on   July    14, 

1  C.  G.   Ratti,  No/hic  sforidic  c  s/'/nv/r  intonio  la  vita  e  Ic  open-  di  Antonio  At/,\i;n 
{Fitiale,  1781). 

2  Bernardo  Morsolin,  //  Miiseo  Gualdo  in    Viccnza.      Descrizionc  fatta  da  Girolamo 
Gualdo  nel  1650.     N'liovo  Ardiivio  Vencto.  vol.  viii..  ])art  i.     Venice,  1894. 

■'  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  127.  ^   Op.  cit.  ii.  ]).   67. 


30  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

1517,  at  the  reading  of  Giovanna  da  Montecorvino's  will,  and  the 
nature  of  the  act  did   not  admit  of  minors  among  the  witnesses.^ 

After  this  it  would  be  superfluous  to  quote  other  documents  of 
later  date,  in  which  we  find  the  father  no  longer  intervening  on  his 
son's  behalf  in  the  contracts  entered  into  by  the  painter.  Nor  will  it 
be  of  much  interest  to  note  that  on  January  12,  151 1,  he  stood 
sponsor  to  an  infant  of  the  Vigarini  family,  named  Antonio,  for,  as 
is  well  known,  children  were  competent  to  undertake  this  office  from 
about  the  age  of  ten. 

Many  evidences,  however,  point  to  the  conclusion  that  the  painter 
was  born  in  1494  ;  and  if  this  be  indeed  the  fact,  his  advent  may  be 
looked  upon  as  in  some  sense  a  compensation  to  the  Emilia  for  the 
heavy  loss  she  sustained  in  the  same  year  by  the  deaths  of  Boiardo, 
Giovanni   Pico  della   Mirandola,  and   Marco  Pio. 

If  there  be  any  who  wish  to  raise  a  further  question  as  to  his 
birthplace,  they  may  quote  the  statement  of  Padre  Resta,  who  asserts 
that  Allegri  was  born  at  a  short  distance  from  Correggio,  in  the 
Castello  di  San  Martino,  where  his  father  owned  a  few  acres  of  land. 
There  is  absolutely  no  foundation  for  this  assertion,  opposed  as  it  is 
not  only  to  the  evidences  of  all  contemporary  documents,  wherein  the 
artist  is  constantly  spoken  of  as  a  native  of  Correggio,  but  to  the  very 
surname  he  derived  from  his  birthplace.  Some  writers  have  therefore 
conjectured  that  the  Padre  confused  the  painter  with  one  Antonio  da 
Correggio,  who  was  parish  priest  of  San  Martino  at  a  much  later 
period. 

The  father  of  our  painter  was  called  Pellegrino  ;  he  named  his  son, 
as  was  usual,  after  his  own  father.  We  do  not  know  the  meaning  of 
the  additional  name  Dovian  given  to  Pellegrino  in  contemporary 
records,^  in  reference  to  which  a  piece  of  land  belonging  to  him  at  San 
Martino  was  known  as  La  Dojuana?  Some  suppose  it  to  have 
signified  Domani  (to-morrow)  and  to  have  been  derived  from  his 
frequent  use  of  the  word.      The  painter's  mother  was  one   Bernardina 

'    Meyer,  p.  i  to. 

-  Pungileoni,  i.  j).  5  and  ii.  p.  251,  V.  Mngnanini,  Cotidiziotd  economiclK  del  Correggio, 
p.  95  (Correggio,  1886).     "Peregrine  de  Alcgris  alias  dicto  Doman." 

■'   Op.  at.  p.  128. 


THE    ALLEGRI    FA^[IIA•  31 

Pia/zoli,  or  degli  Aromani,  who  broug-lit  her  husband  as  dowry  a 
hundred  liir  of  the  Corrcggese  currency.  Brunorio,  to  whom  we 
are  indebted  for  this  information,  does  not  give  us  any  hint  as  to 
the  date  of  their  marriage.^  Such  an  indication  would  have  been  of 
great  value,  as  determining  in  a  measure  the  date  of  birth  of  their 
only  son. 

The  tradition  that  the  Allegri  family  came  originally  from  a  fortified 
village  of  Campagnola  called  Castellazzo  rests  on  a  certain  historic 
basis.-  The  mere  statement  that  persons  bearing  the  name  of  Allegri 
were  known  there  so  early  as  the  first  half  of  the  fourteenth  century 
is  of  little  importance,  for  families  of  this  name  were  also  to  be  found 
in  other  districts.  P)Ut  the  probability  of  the  legend  is  very  much 
increased  when  we  read  that  Castellazzo  was  demolished  in  1371  for 
strategic  reasons,  and  that  its  inhabitants  lied  to  Corrcggio.^  It 
is  true  that  some  historians  attribute  its  destruction  to  Ambrogio 
Visconti,  Bernabo's  lieutenant,  and  others  to  Guido  of  Correggio. 
But  they  all  agree  as  to  the  date  and  the  place  of  migration,  and 
the  fact  that  the  suppressed  commune  came  under  the  jurisdiction  of 
Correggio  the  following  year,  together  with  the  further  fact  that  after 
this  period  no  Allegri  are  to  be  traced  in  Campagnola,  whereas  they 
are  to  be  found  flourishing  in  Correggio,  forces  us  to  recognise  a 
substratum  of  truth   in   the  tradition. 

We  are  not  inclined  to  lay  much  stress  on  the  conjectures  of  writers, 
who  trace  our  artist's  pedigree  back  to  a  certain  Allegro,  flourishing 
under  the  Countess  Matilda,  or  to  one  Pietro  di  Allegro  of  Reggio. 
The  theory  which  refers  the  family  origin  to  Campagnola  seems  to  us 
a  much  more  probable  one,  and  accepting  it,  we  find  the  earliest  notice 
of  Correggio's  ancestry  in  the  year  1329.  Pungileoni,  anxious  to 
prove  that  they    belonged   from   the    first    to    the  city    of    Correggio, 

1  Gherardo  l.^irunorio,  Lcltcra  suit  ori;^iiu\  s/a/i>,  e  condizione  del  fanwsissimo  pit/ore 
A.  A.  chiamato  volgarmaitc  il  Correggio  (Bologna,  1716).  This  work  was  rei)ioduced 
by  Nicola  Tacoli,  under  the  name  of  Abbot  Carlo  Talcnti.  {Memon'e  storiche  di 
Reggio  di  Lombardia.)     Part  iii.,  p.  495,  el  seq.     Carpi,  1769. 

-  The  tradition  was  accepted  by  Brunorio,  Antonioli.  and  Ratti,  but  afterwards 
rejected  by  Tiraboschi,  Tungileoni,  &c. 

3  Fr.  Sansovino.  Deir  originc  e  dei  falti  delle  famiglie  illustri  d'  Italia,  p.  274. 
(Venice,  1582,)      Magnanini,  \<.  92. 


32  ANTONIO    nA    CORRECrGIO 

affirmed,  without,  however,  producing  any  documents,  that  according 
to  a  deed  drawn  up  by  one  Corradino  Corradini,  a  certain  Allegro  took 
the  oath  of  fealty  to  the  Lords  of  Correggio  in  1329.  But  it  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  Brunorio,  dealing  with  the  same  date,  declared  that 
the  name  of  one  Allegro  d'Antonio  occurred  in  the  book,  now  no 
longer  extant,  of  the  vassals  and  subjects  of  the  Lords  of  Correggio, 
among  those  inhabitants  of  Campagnola,  who,  according  to  a  deed  of  the 
same  notary,  swore  allegiance  to  Giberto.  It  is  evident  that  the  same 
Allegri  is  referred  to  in  both  cases.  The  first  person,  however,  to 
whom  we  can  assign  a  place  in  the  genealogical  tree  with  any  degree 
of  certainty  is  one  Giacomo,  who  flourished  about  1440.  All  attempts 
to  trace  its  earlier  ramifications  will  land  us  in  a  maze  of  pure  con- 
jecture. For  the  rest,  we  have  no  desire  to  deal  minutely  with  the 
painter's  kinsfolk  and  family  connections  for  the  mere  pleasure  of 
transcribing  barren  lists  of  forgotten  names. ^  Those  of  his  relatives 
who  came  into  direct  or  indirect  contact  with  him  will  emerge  from 
obscurity  in  the  course  of  our  narrative.  We  must  not,  however,  omit 
to  refer  to  a  document  hitherto  ignored  by  all  writers  on  Correggio, 
which  not  only  informs  us  that  a  branch  of  the  Allegri  took  root  in 
Bolognese  soil,  but  also  adds  eight  names  to  the  family  pedigree. 
In  June,  1479,  Cristoforo,  son  of  the  Giacomo  above-mentioned,  and 
brother  of  our  painter's  grandfather,  took  up  his  abode  in  the  State 
of  Bologna  with  his  wife  Orsolina,  and  his  children,  Giberto, 
Francesco,  Elisabetta,  Antonio,  Giovanni  IMaria,  Clemente,  Antonia, 
and  Pellegrina.- 

The  house  in  which  Correggio  was  born  was  in  the  quarter  known 
as   the  Borgo    Vccchio,   and  stood   it  appears,   on    land   belonging    to 

'  The  genealogical  tree  compiled  by  Michele  Antonioli  is  given  by  Magnanini,  p.  57. 

-  Archives  of  the  State  of  Bologna. — Section  of  the  Commune. — Order  of  Registration 
and  Presentation  of  Strangers. — Rejiort  as  to  Strangers  domiciled  in  Bologna.  Sec  vol. 
of  1475  'o  1601.  "  Eodem  millesino  (1476)  die  quartadecima  junii  Christoforus  quondam 
Jacobi  de  Alegris  de  Corigio  forensis  et  laborator  terrarum  qui  ut  asseruit  de  novo  venit 
ad  civitatem  Bononie,  causa  habitandi  in  comitatu  aut  guardia  eiusdem  et  ibidem  opera 
rusticalia  exercendi  cum  infrascripta  sua  familia  videlicet,  Ursolina  eius  u.Kore,  Giberto, 
Francischo,  Elisabet,  Anthonio,  Johannc  Maria,  Clemente,  Anthonia,  Pellegrina  eius 
filiis.  Comparuit  coram  mc  Enoch,  \-c.  Actum  ut  sui)ia  jircscntibus  Jacobo  quondam 
Thome  de  Montcclaro  bonon  .  rive  .  qui  dixit  etc.  et  Scr  I'rancischo  de  Oleo  notario 
testibus,  etc." 


HE    ALLECRI 


the  Pia  Socicta  dci  W-rbcrati  di  Sanla  Maria,  to  whom  [xji-taincd  the 
ground-rent  of  seven  so/di  of  the  ancient  coinage.  It  was,  perhaps, 
one  of  those  buih  at  the  close  of  the  fourteenth  century  for  the  accom- 
modation of  the  fugitive  Campagnolese,  for  the  Borgo  J'ccc/iio  was  an 
addition  to  the  city  necessitated  by  their  immigration.  IJrunorio  saw 
in  this  an  additional  argu- 
ment for  the  theory  that 
the  Allegri  were  originally 
natives  of  Campagnola. 
But  the  house  only  came 
into  their  hands  in  May, 
1446,  being  then  purchased 
by  Jacopo,  who  repaired 
and  enlarged  it  four  years 
later.i  Even  then  it  re- 
mained a  very  humble 
dwelling.  When  in  15(4 
the  emissaries  of  the  con- 
vent of  San  Francesco  pre- 
sented themselves  to  give 
the  order  for  their  famous 
picture,  they  were  obliged 
to  carry  on  their  negotia- 
tions with  the  painter  in 
his  bed-room  ad  tei'rcnuin.  nv^"^  u,.  nu;  alleoki  at  cuukeou.u. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that 

he  worked  and  slept   in  the  same  room,  a  room  on  the  ground  lloor, 
which  in  that  district  is  always  damp  and  unhealthy. 

A  further  enlargement  was  made  by  the  acquisition  of  a  small 
adjoining  house,  bought  from  one  Ippolita  .Scaltriti  for  twenty- five 
ducats  in  the  April  of  1529,  at  which  date  the  painter  was  making 
considerable  sums  by  his  work,  and  might  well  have  afforded  himself 
a  more  comfortable  dwelling.  But  he  loved  his  paternal  home,  and 
in  his  humility  he  never  perhaps  thought  of  (putting  it.  His  grand- 
'  Fungileoni,  ii.  p.  274,  and  Magnanini,  [>[).  24  and  59. 

F 


34  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

parents  and  parents  had  spent  their  Hves  under  its  roof  ;  there  he  had 
himself  first  seen  the  hght  ;  there  the  vision  of  art  had  first  dawned 
upon  him  ;  and  there,  still  a  young  man,  he  ended  his  days.  The 
house  so  dearly  loved  by  him  should  have  been  a  sacred  and  precious 
heritage  to  his  son.  But  the  thought  that  he  had  lived  and  died  and 
produced  his  marvellous  works  within  its  walls  was  not  sufficient  in- 
ducement to  his  heir  to  preserve  it.  In  December,  1550,  it  was  sold 
to  Gherardino  Paris. ^  The  enumeration  of  the  different  rooms  in  which 
Alessandro  Paris  the  notary,  son  of  Gherardino,  drew  up  his  acts,  ac- 
cording to  the  season  of  the  year,  gives  some  idea  of  the  limited 
accommodation  of  the  house.  In  the  winter  he  worked  in  the  bed- 
chamber or  ab  igm\  that  is  to  say,  in  the  kitchen  ;  in  warm  weather  he 
established  himself  under  the  porch  at  the  entrance,  on  the  lobby  of  the 
staircase,  or  on  a  little  upper  loggia  which  had  existed  in  the  painter's 
time.  In  1572  Paris  declared  his  intention  of  leaving  the  house  to  the 
College  of  Notaries  at  Correggio,  on  condition  of  their  undertaking 
certain  specified  work.-  But  twenty  years  later,  either  because  he  had 
changed  his  mind  or  the  notaries  had  failed  to  satisfy  his  demands,  he 
decided,  in  default  of  direct  heirs,  to  bequeathe  it  to  the  Hospital  of 
Santa  Maria,  the  almoners  of  which  sold  it  to  Ranuccio  Sogari 
for  a  hundred  and  seventy  scudi  in  1625.'  Early  in  the  eighteenth 
century  the  front  part  fell  down,  causing  great  damage  to  several 
adjoining  cottages. 

The  history  of  our  painter's  home  may  be  said  to  end  here,  but 
to  avoid  the  necessity  of  further  reference  thereto,  we  may  add  the 
ground  on  which  it  stood,  and  the  portion  of  the  building  still  intact, 
were  bought  by  P'rancesco  Contarelli,  who  cleared  away  the  rubbish 
from  the  space  in  front,  and  made  the  little  Piazza  dcllc  case  hnicialc 
{bund  houses),  afterwards  known  as  the  Piazzale  Allegri.  P^rom 
the  Contarelli  the  Piazzale  passed  into  the  possession  of  the  body 
known  as  the  Coiiqrcgazioiic  di  Carita,  and  thence  to  a  society 
of  gentlemen  of  Correggio,  who  bought  it  to  ensure  its  preservation, 
and  presented  it  si.xteen  years  later  to  the  niunici[)ality. 

The  meanness  of  this  tlwidling  has  often  been  adduced  to  confute 
'  Tiraboschi,  p.  2.)o.  -  Magnanini,  ji.  21.  ■'  Op.  dl.  p.  28. 


THE    ALT.l'.r.RI    FAMILY  35 

llif  armimcnts  of  those  who  assert  Corregoio  to  have  lived  in  easy 
and  conifortahle  circumstances,  and  to  sui)[)ort  tht;  lej^cndary  storie^s 
of  his  extreme  poverty.  We  shall  have  occasion  to  touch  on  this  point 
further  on  in  considering-  the  character  of  oin-  painter.  I?ut  we 
may  remark  in  passing  that  the  modest  dwelling  was  hy  no  means 
poverty-stricken  at  the  time  of  the  artist's  hirth.  In  the  Allegri 
hou.sehold,  squalor  and  luxury  were  alike  unknown.  It  was  therefore 
easy  for  critics  to  go  from  one;  extreme  to  another,  and  we  can  readily 
understand  how,  after  stories  had  long  been  current  setting  forth  the 
semi-starvation  endured  by  the  painter  and  his  kinsfolk,  the  first 
appearance  of  documents  which  proved  them  to  have  been  the 
possessors  of  houses  and  lands,  caused  an  exaggerated  revulsion  of 
opinion.  Gherardo  Brunorio,  relying  upon  the  Allegro  mentioned  in 
the  Countess  Matilda's  Charter  of  i  109,  would  fain  have  proved  them 
not  only  rich,  but  of  noble  birth.  The  fact  that  one  of  Correggio's 
daughters  married  a  Brunorio  accounts  for  this  little  weakness  on 
the  part  of  the  good  Gherardo,  who  seems  to  have  forgotten  that 
greater  lustre  was  shed  on  the  family  by  the  painter's  glory  than  by 
problematical  descent  from  a  vassal  of  the  Countess  Matilda. 

Cristoforo  Allegri,  that  brother  of  Correggio's  grandfather  who,  as 
we  have  seen,  settled  on  Bolognese  territory  in  1476,  is  called,  in 
the  archivial  document  above  quoted,  a  tiller  of  the  soil,  and  a  person 
occupied  in  rustic  labours.  This  shows  the  Allegri  to  have  been 
originally  peasants,  whose  industry  enabled  them  to  acquire  small  plots 
of  land  and  work  them  on  their  own  account.  The  branch  which  settled 
in  Corrcggio  succeeded  in  exchanging  their  old  calling  of  agriculturists 
for  one  less  arduous,  and  greatly  improved  their  social  condition. 

In  his  will,  dated  14S5,  Correggio's  grandfather  left  a  considerable 
addition  to  the  property  of  his  father  Jacopo,  and  altogether  raised  the 
position  of  the  family.  His  son  Lorenzo  was  a  painter,  and  thus  to  the 
products  of  the  land  at  Ponte  Sanguineto  he  was  able  to  add  the  fruits 
of  his  art. 

Correggio's  father,  Pellegrino,  appears  from  contemporary  evidences 
to  have  been  a  man  of  unusual  resource  and  energy.  Whilst  busily 
engaged  in  his  own  trade  as  a  victualler  and  petty  manufacturer,  he  was 


,^6  AXTOXIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

also  buying  land,  and  watching  over  the  interests  of  the  son  whose 
labours  were  of  such  a  different  nature. 

We  do  not  propose  to  give  a  detailed  account  of  the  various  small 
purchases  made  by  Pellegrino,  or  of  the  lands  he  rented  from  different 
owners,  several  other  writers  having  made  a  special  study  of  these 
details.  It  may  be  briefly  stated  that  Pellegrino's  property,  swelled  by 
the  earnings  of  his  son,  and  the  dowry  of  his  son's  wife,  Girolama 
Merlini,  consisted  towards  1534  of  some  hundred  and  twenty  Reggian 
acres  scattered  over  the  commune  of  Fabrico,  and  the  districts  of 
iMandrio,  Mandriolo,  Fosdondo,  S.  Prospero,  S.  Biagio,  and  S.  Martino, 
the  whole  forming  an  inheritance  by  no  means  to  be  despised  in  those 
days.  When  Pellegrino  made  his  will  in  153S,  he  was  in  a  position  to 
give  his  grandchild,  the  daughter  of  our  painter— then  fourteen  years 
old — a  dowry  of  two  hundred  and  forty  gold  saidi,  a  very  considerable 
portion  at  that  period.  He  also  made  various  other  bequests  of  some 
value,  among  them  one  of  twenty  gold  scudi  to  a  female  servant.^ 

A  governor  of  Parma,  Alessandro  Caccia,  wrote  to  the  Duke  of 
Mantua  five  months  after  the  death  of  Correggio  :  "  I  hear  he  has 
made  comfortable  provision  for  his  heirs." 

In  these  two  words,  "comfortable  provision,"  the  worthy  governor 
defines  the  social  status  of  the  Allegri  family  better  than  all  the 
biographers  who  exaggerated  its  wealth  on  the  one  hand,  or  its  poverty 
on  the  other. 

1  Tiraboschi,  p.  239.  Pungileoni,  i.  pp.  5,  6,  74,  152;  ii.  pp.  210,  227,  231,  &c. 
Magnanini,  pp.  15,  70,  95,  119  et  seq.  Tiraboschi  quotes  a  letter  written  from  Correggio, 
signed  with  the  assumed  name  of  Pieter  Rans,  of  Berne,  dealing  with  the  true  origin 
and  condition  of  the  painter  {Op.  at.  p.  235).  Pellegrino's  will  was  published  by 
Domenico  Manni  in  his  Osserf-asioni  cina  i  sigi//i  antichi,  xxi.x.  p.  91  ;  Florence,  1784. 


Paolo  at  Parma  ) 


CHAPTER    III 

CORRE(U;iO'S    MASTERS 

ARTISTS  IN  CORRFXGIO — I'RAN'CESCA   OF  BRANDENBURG'S   PALACE— LORENZO  ALLEC.RI 
AND    rRANCESCO    BIANCHI  FERRARI— THE    FERRARESE    SCHOOL    OF    PAINTINO. 

ALL  that  biographers  have 
written  concerning  the 
h'terary  education  of  the 
youthful  Antonio  is  purely  ima- 
ginary. The  good  handwriting 
and  excellent  spelling  of  his 
autograph  letters  are  sufficient 
evidence  that  his  father  had 
early  entrusted  him  to  some 
careful  master.  But  here  our 
knowledge  ceases.  Pungileoni  was 
simply  drawing  on  his  powers  of 
invention  when  he  said:  "Gio- 
vanni Rerni  of  Piacenza  was  the 
first  person  to  instruct  him  in 
the  elements  of  letters    and   Battista  Marastoni  of  Modena  was  his 


38  ANTONIO    DA    CORREC^GIO 

guide  to  the  retreats  of  the  Muses  and  of  eloquence."  The  discovery 
that  these  two  masters  were  Hving  at  Correggio  about  the  year  1500 
was  sufficient  ground  for  the  fabrication  of  this  statement,  which  rests 
on  no  better  foundation  than  the  kindred  assertion  that  at  a  later 
date  our  painter  '■  sought  to  enrich  his  mind  by  the  study  of 
philosophy,  his  instructor  being  the  physician,  Gian  Battista  Lom- 
bardi."^  If  we  further  accept  the  statement  of  some  that  Correggio 
was  also  a  student  of  mathematical  science,  we  must  believe  our 
painter  to  have  been  a  striking  example  of  universal  aptitudes  !  But, 
unluckily,  there  are  others  who  declare  that  he  had  no  inclination 
for  such  studies,  and  that  feeling  himself  strongly  drawn  towards  art, 
he  allowed  his  parents  to  grumble  as  they  pleased  at  his  neglect  of 
other  learning.- 

During  his  boyhood  Correggio  had  many  opportunities  of  meeting 
artists  in  his  native  place,  and  witnessed  the  completion  of  many 
famous  works. 

The  names  of  two  painters  only,  Jacopo  di  Jodo  and  Giovanni 
Balducci,  occur  in  Correggese  records  of  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth 
century  ;  but  immediately  afterwards,  throughout  the  latter  part  of  the 
century,  and  the  first  twenty  years  of  the  succeeding  one,  we  note  the 
presence  of  a  perfect  phalanx  of  masters,  whose  activity  shows  most 
evidently  how  the  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  had  manifested  itself  at 
Correggio,  what  the  importance  of  the  city  must  have  been,  and  how 
great  the  zeal  of  its  princes  for  art  and  for  the  dignity  of  their  court  ; 
what,  in  short,  was  the  atmosphere  in  which  Correggio  grew  up  and 
developed.  Not  only  were  painters  busily  at  work  there,  but,  as  docu- 
ments and  the  surviving  evidences  of  their  industry  alike  tell  us, 
weavers  of  tapestries  and  carpets,  goldsmiths,  sculptors,  and  architects. 
In  the  spacious  lateral  chapels  of  San  Francesco,  built  by  Manfredo 
and  Agnese  in  1470,  there  are  capitals  ornamented  with  sculptured 
angels    and    coats    of    arms,    executed    with     admirable    breadth    and 


'  Op.  cit.  i.  pji.  7  and  ig.  Otiier  writers  give  the  name  as  Mnratori  instead  of 
Marastoni. 

2  Quirino  Bigi,  Delia  vita  c  dcllc  opcrc  ccrk  cd  iinviic  di  Antonio  Allci^ri  dctto  il 
Correggio,  p.  4.     Modena,  1880. 


ARTISTS    AT   CORREGdlO  39 

sinci-rity.  In  l;uv  documents  of  the  years  1460  and  149S  we  read 
the  names  of  Rinaldo  Dure,  of  Flanders,  a  noted  weaver  of  tapestries, 
who  worked  l)otli  for  the  Estensi  and  the  Gonzaghi  ;  of  master  Conto 
della  Zinella  of  Trent,  embroiderer,  of  Enrico  of  Lodi,  designer,  of 
Giacomo  Piemontesio,  magislcr  rasoi-nm}  These,  with  others,  formed 
a  school  of  experts,  whose  services  were  in  request  at  many  Italian 
Courts.  In  1498  a  certain  Giovanni  Cucchiari,  iiiagisk'r  pannorum 
rassc,  working-  at  Ferrara,  though  really  a  native  of  Flanders,  was 
there  described  as  "of  Correggio,"  because  he  came  from  that 
city,  and  had  passed  through  its  school.-  Artists  flocked  thither 
from  various  States,  in  some  cases  from  considerable  distances.  Among 
the  painters  were  Bartolomeo  di  Giovanni  and  Francesco  Angeli, 
both  of  Milan;  Giovanni  Battista  of  Lodi,  Giovanni  of  Rubiera, 
Antonio  Mangoni  of  Caravaggio,  Bartolomeo,  called  Brasoii,  the 
Ferrarese,  Battista  di  Carlino  di  Bagnolo,  Giovanni  di  Pietro, 
called  //  Rosso  of  Carbonara,  and  his  son  Sebastiano,  and  Ales- 
sandrino  di  Giovanni  d'Arceto,  whose  labours  brought  them  into 
frequent  contact  with  native  painters  such  as  Antonio  Bartolotti, 
Lorenzo  and  Ouirino  Allegri,  Baldassarre  Lusenti,  Giovanni  di  Pietro 
di  Giovanni,  Giberto  Trombetta,  Giberto  di  Ubicino,  optiinus  pictor, 
Master  Latino,  and  Bernardo  di  Luchino,  if  indeed  these  last  may  be 
called  Correggese  artists.  Two  goldsmiths,  father  and  son,  Giovanni 
Antonio  and  Alessandro  dei  Cavallari,  had  come  from  Bologna." 
Among  so  many  artists,  some,  no  doubt,  were  good,  many  mediocre, 
and  the  majority  bad.  Nevertheless,  the  fact  that  they  should  have 
assemliled  in  this  little  city  within  such  a  short  time  is  in  itself 
sufficiently    remarkable. 

Of  some  among  them,  indeed,  we  find  favourable  notices.  Bernardo 
di    Luchino  must   certainly  be   that    Bernardo   of  Correggio    who  was 

'  Pungileoni,  ii.  pp.  6-7.  Quirino  Bigi,  Degli  arazzieri  e  ricamatori  di  Correggio. 
Correggio,  1878.  Bigi  believed  c-ertain  tapestries  now  in  the  Town  Hall  to  be  works  of 
the  fifteenth  century,  and  indulges  in  dissertations  based  on  this  belief  They  date,  as  a 
fact,  from  the  end  of  the  sixteenth,  if  not  from  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth,  century. 

2  Pierre  Gentili.  Sitr  /'Art  dc  Tapis,  p.  ;,o.     Rome,  1878. 

3  Pungileoni,  ii.  pp.  4-6  :  iii.  pp.  i  -2.  ISigi,  Notizie  di  Ant.  Aiiegn,  di  Ant.  Bartolotti, 
ecc,  pii.  6-17.      Modena,  1S73. 


40  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

painting  the  Anziani  rooms  at  Reggio  between  1501  and  1504,'  and  it 
is  not  improbable  that  Bartolomeo  di  Giovanni  of  Milan  was  that 
Bartolomeo  dc  Coreza  who  worked  for  the  Counts  of  Novellara  in 
1498.  The  fact  of  his  being  described  as  dc  Coreza  by  no  means  tells 
against  the  hypothesis  ;  it  was  the  custom  for  writers  to  distinguish 
an  artist  by  the  name  of  the  place  in  which  he  generally  lived, 
and  from  whence  he  came,  as  we  have  seen  was  actually  done  at 
Ferrara  in  a  document  of  the  same  date  referring  to  Giovanni  of 
Flanders. 

"The  prudent  master,  Bartolomeo  de  Ferrara,  known  as  Maestro 
Brasoii"  was  probably  an  artist  of  some  merit.  By  his  will,  dated 
1509,  he  left  his  wife  all  his  effects  both  at  Ferrara  and  Correggio, 
charging  her,  however,  to  pay  to  the  Church  of  San  Domenico  one 
gold  ducat,  in  compensation  for  a  crucifix  he  had  failed  to  paint  for 
them  as  agreed,  and  to  give  a  certain  stone  for  grinding  colours  to  his 
assistant,  together  with  the  greater  part  of  his  wardrobe.  He 
recovered,  however,  from  the  illness  which  prompted  the  drawing  up 
of  this  will,  in  which  he  disposed  of  everything  he  possessed,  down  to 
his  cap  and  slippers.  We  find  that  in  15 14  he  was  commissioned  by 
the  confraternity  of  Santa  Maria  to  paint  another  crucifi.x,  and  to 
restore  an  image  of  St.  Peter  Martyr.- 

Baldassarre  Lusenti  painted  a  chapel  of  St.  Ursula  in  fresco, 
for  a  noble  and  cultured  nun  of  the  convent  of  Corpus  Domini, 
Isotta,  daughter  of  the  famous  Nicolo  da  Correggio,  a  poetess  of  some 
talent.  When  Caterina  Torelli,  widow  of  Gian  Pietro  Gonzaga,  deter- 
mined to  decorate  and  beautify  some  of  the  rooms  in  her  castle  at 
Novellara,  and,  in  particular,  to  prepare  a  private  cabinet  for  Costanza, 
daughter  of  Giberto  da  Correggio,  who  went  to  Novellara  as  the  bride 
of  Alessandro  Gonzaga,  she  employed  several  Correggese  painters, 
among  them  Master  Antonio  and  Master  Latino. 

The  accounts  of  expenses  incurred  by  the  Gonzaghi  for  the 
lodging  of  the  "painters  of  Correza  and  their  company"  fix  the  date 
of  their  sc)journ   at    1515    to    151S.      It   is   much    to   be   regretted   that 

'   Franc.  Malaguzzi-Valcri,  Notizie  di  ariisti  reggiani^  p.  35.      Reggio,  1S9J. 

2  G.  Campori,  Gli artisti  italiani  e  stra/tkri  tiegli  slati  esteitsi,  p.  96.     Modcna,  1855. 


FRANCESCA    OF    BRANDENBURG'S    PALACE  41 

nothing  remains  of  the  paintings  executed  by  these  masters  in  the 
Dominican  monastery,  the  church  and  hospital  of  S.  Antonio,  the 
monastery  of  Corpus  Domini,  and  the  convent  of  the  Capuchins.  The 
one  sample  of  their  work  still  extant  is  a  S/.  Litcy  of  much  grace  and 
sweetness,  near  the  entrance  door  of  the  north  aisle,  in  the  Capuchin 
Church  of  S.    Francesco. 

In  1507,  Francesca  of  Brandenburg,  widow  of  Giberto  da  Correggio, 
built    her    magnificent    palace.      Even    in    its    present    ruined    state, 


such  fragments  as  the  inner  loggia,  and  the  delicate  reliefs  of  the  outer 
door  excite  our  admiration.  In  this  palace,  of  which  Correggio,  in 
his  boyhood  witnessed  the  foundation,  watched  the  gradual  progress, 
and  admired  the  final  adornment  with  pictures  and  sculpture  :  here, 
where  in  his  manhood  he  so  often  enjoyed  the  intellectual  society  of 
Veronica  Gambara,  a  room,  decorated  with  a  broad  frieze  and  a 
coftered  ceiling,  is  still   preserved.      The   ornament,   a   delicate   tracery 

G 


42  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

in  chiaroscuro,  relieved  against  a  background  of  dark  blue,  is  composed 
of  figures  of  Neptune,  repeated  at  intervals,  and  ingeniously  combined 
with  satyrs  and  sirens  playing  musical  instruments,  griffins,  shields,  and 
the  date  1508.  Certain  features  in  the  decoration  clearly  proclaim 
Mantegnesque  influences,  though  some  critics  have  maintained  it  to  be 
purely  Ferrarese  in  character.  Be  this  as  it  may,  we  here  recognise 
the  hand  of  Cesare  da  Reggio,  who,  as  soon  as  he  had  finished  the 
decoration  of  this  chamber,  applied  the  same  system  of  grotesques  and 
chiaroscuro  ornament  to  the  vault  and  lunettes  of  the  sacristy  in  the 
Church  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista  at  Parma. 

The  first  place  among  all  the  painters  we  have  mentioned  is, 
however,  unanimously  accorded  to  Antonio  Bartolotti  degli  Anceschi, 
called  Tognino,  whom  many  hold  to  have  been  Correggio's  first 
master.  Born  shortly  after  1450,  he  lived  till  1527.  We  find  notices 
of  several  works  executed  by  him  for  the  Franciscans  and  the  Church 
of  Santa  Maria  della  Misericordia.^  It  is  therefore  probable  that  the 
H/astcr  Antonio  who  worked  at  the  Castle  of  Novellara  from  15 14 
to  1 5 18  was  Bartolotti  rather  than  Correggio.  Their  identity  of 
names,  however,  makes  it  impossible  to  clear  up  this  point,  failing  the 
evidence  of  further  documents.  A  fresco,  originally  at  Correggio,  re- 
presenting the  Virgin  and  Child  with  SS.  Francis  and  Ouirinus  and  an 
angel,  is  now  in  the  Estense  Gallery  at  Modena,  where  it  is  tentatively 
ascribed  to  Bartolotti.  During  its  various  journeys  from  one  church 
to  another  in  Correggio,  and  thence  in  1787  to  Modena,  the  work 
suffered  severely,  although  treated  with  every  respect,  and  was  already 
a  ruin  when  in  1845  it  was  transferred  to  canvas.-  It  is  therefore 
impossible  to  judge  of  its  artistic  character  in  relation  to  Correggio's 
early  works,  or  to  determine  by  its  help  how  far  the  hypothesis  that 
the  youthful  Allegri  learnt  the  elements  of  painting  from  Bartolotti  is 
tenable. 

No  one,  on  the  other  hand,  will  be  inclined  to  dispute  the  extreme 
probability    of  the    assumption    that    as    a    child,    Antonio,    bent    on 

'  I'ungileoni,  i.  p.  18S;  ii.  ji.  27.  Bigi,  Notizic  di  Antonio  Allegri  e  di  Antonio 
Bartolotti,  p.  6  et  seq. 

2  Adolfo  Venturi,  La  R.  Galkria  cstcnsc  in  Modena,  p.  342  ct  seq.     Modena,  1883 


LORENZO    AI>LEGRI  43 

becoming  a  painter,  may  have  made  his  first  attempts  to  handle  a 
brush  in  the  family  atelier,  that  in  which  his  uncle  Lorenzo  and  his 
cousin  Ouirino  were  working.  The  contemplation  of  an  art  practised 
by  those  immediately  surrounding  them  has  often  determined  the  early 
inclinations  of  children,  and  we  constantly  fmd  the  sons  or  nephews 
of  painters  and  musicians  becoming  in  their  turn  painters  and 
musicians.  Traditional  talents  manifest  themselves  not  only  in  races, 
but  in  cities  and  families,  and  he  who  overlooks  this  fact  robs  his 
researches  of  a  very  useful  aid  to  criticism.  Even  in  the  Emilia  itself, 
we  might  illustrate  the  theory  by  native  instances,  such  as  those  of  the 
Loschi  and  the  Mazzoli  at  Parma,  the  Francia  family  and  the  Carracci 
at  Bologna,  the  Erri  at  Modena,  the  Dossi  at  Ferrara,  the  Longhi 
at  Ravenna  ! 

In  considering  the  early  training  of  Correggio,  we  must  give  due 
weight  to  the  important  fact  that  Lorenzo  Allegri,  his  father's  brother, 
was  a  painter.  And  it  is  natural  to  suppose  that  the  two  little  cousins, 
Ouirino  and  Antonio,  playmates  from  infancy,  made  their  first  emulous 
essays  with  brush  and  pencil  side  by  side. 

Rinaldo  Corso's  playful  assertion  that  Lorenzo  Allegri  "  wishing  to 
depict  a  lion,  drew  a  goat,  and  wrote  the  title  above  it  "  ^  has  been 
held  sufficient  proof  that  he  could  not  possibly  have  taught  the 
rudiments  of  his  art  to  the  little  nephew  who  showed  so  precocious 
a  passion  for  painting.  Tiraboschi,  relying  on  that  common-sense 
criticism  which  is  always  the  most  persuasive,  demands  with  great 
simplicity  :  "  Now  since  he  had  an  uncle,  who  was  a  painter, 
though  perhaps  a  mediocre  one,  is  it  not  probable  that  he  learnt  the 
rudiments  of  his  art  from  him  ?'  - 

Though  it  must  be  admitted  that  among  the  many  works  carried 
out  at  this  period,  contemporary  documents  credit  Lorenzo  only  with 
the  humblest,  we  find  by  way  of  compensation,  that  in  1503  (when 
Correggio  was  nine  years  old),  he  painted  the  Cappella  delle  Indulgenze 
and  a  picture  for  the  Church  of  .S.    Francesco,    the  favourite   place  of 

'  Dichiaraziouc  faffa  sufm  la  sccoiida  parte  dcllc  Rime  della  divina  Colonna,  Man/iesa 
di  Pescara,  a//a  Molto  III.  Mad.  Vcronua  Gainbara  da  CornxK'o  f  a  lie  donnc  (^cntili 
dedicala.     Bologna,  1 542-1 543.  -   Op.  at.  p.  245- 


44  ANTONIO    DA    PORREGGIO 

worship  of  the  lords  of  the  clty.^  In  the  palace  built  by  Count  Giberto, 
a  room  was  preserved  till  about  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
in  which  was  to  be  seen  the  coat  of  arms  of  the  prince,  together  with 
that  of  the  Lords  of  IMirandola,  and  a  variety  of  frescoes  and  mytho- 
logical subjects,  one  of  which  was  signed  Laitrentins  P.  Pungileoni, 
after  confessing  that  scarcely  a  vestige  of  these  paintings  remained  in 
his  time,  hastens  to  add  that  he  could  not  accept  the  piece  in  question 
as  the  work  of  Lorenzo  !  Such  a  method  of  reasoning  naturally  leads 
to  a  somewhat  lame  conclusion  ! 

Whether  this  was  the  work  of  Lorenzo  or  not,  we  may  be  permitted 
to  ask  if  serious  criticism  is  justified  in  dismissing  an  artist  as  incom- 
petent on  the  evidence,  not  of  any  sample  of  his  work,  but  on  that  of 
a  contemporary's  hoii  mot.  Following  such  a  precedent  as  this, 
we  might,  had  the  Divine  Comedy  perished,  be  now  judging 
that  great  work  by  the  dictum  of  Cecco  d'Ascoli,  who  accused 
Alighieri  of  "croaking  like  the  frogs."  If  none  of  Francia's 
sweet  creations  survived  in  churches  and  galleries  for  our  delight,  what 
idea  should  we  have  formed  of  his  art,  knowing  nothing  of  him 
but  that  Michelangelo  called  him  a  blockhead,  and  said  to  one  of  his 
sons  :  "  The  living  figures  your  father  produces  are  better  than  those 
he  paints  !  "  And,  not  to  multiply  instances,  what  opinion  should  we 
have  of  our  Allegri  himself,  if  all  that  remained  to  us  of  him  were  the 
traditional  criticism  of  the  Canon,  who  pronounced  the  paintings  ot  the 
cupola  of  the  Cathedral  at  Parma  "  a  hash  of  frogs  "  ? 

Lorenzo  was  certainly  no  great  artist,  but  Rinaldo  Corso's  jest 
(which  is  almost  a  repetition  of  one  of  Vasari's),  by  no  means  forbids  the 
assumption  that  he  may  have  been  the  first  to  observe  his  nephew's 
aptitude,  and  to  teach  him  to  hold  a  pencil.  Final  results  are  due 
above  all  to  personal  gifts,  and  when  great  men  recall  their  first 
masters,  many  among  them  may  well  smile  as  they  think  of  the  naive 
ignorance  of  those  to  whom,  nevertheless,  they  owe  their  initiation 
into  art,  or  letters  or  science.  Lorenzo  died  in  December,  1527.  He 
therefore  lived  long  enough  to  witness  the  full  development  of  his 
nephew's  genius. 

'   I'ungileoni,  i.  pp.  14-15;  »•  I'l'-  4  ^'id  23- 


CORREGGIO'S    MASTERS  45 

Yasari  does  not  so  much  as  allude  to  Correggio's  masters,  and  it  was 
not  until  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century  that  a  passage  inter- 
polated by  Gian  Battista  Spaccini  in  the  Modenese  Chronicle  of  Tom- 
masino  de'  Bianchi,  called  de'  Lancellotti,  pronounced  him  the  pupil  of 
Francesco  Bianchi-Ferrari.  The  statement,  which  was  repeated  by 
Vedriani  in  his  History  of  Modena.^  gradually  gained  credence,  and 
though  contested  by  Tiraboschi,^  Pungileoni,''  and  others,  had,  and 
continues  to  have,  supporters.  A  well-known  art-critic  writes  as 
follows  :  "  This  tradition  rests  on  a  firmer  basis  than  is  generally 
supposed,  for  if  the  statement  was  in  the  original  Chronicle  by 
Lancellotti  which  Spaccini  copied,  its  evidence  is  indisputable  ;  and  if  it 
was  interpolated  by  Spaccini  at  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century,  the 
tradition  must  have  gained  ground  early,  and  is  in  itself  probable 
enough.  It  has  been  objected  that  Francesco  Bianchi-Ferrari  died  in 
1 510,  when  Correggio  was  only  sixteen,  and  that  the  Modenese 
painter  could  only  have  taught  him  the  rudiments  of  his  art.  To  this 
argument  we  may  reply  that  the  precocious  development  of  the 
artists  of  our  Renaissance  is  a  matter  of  general  knowledge,  and 
further,  that  we  are  by  no  means  certain  that  Correggio  was  only 
sixteen  at  this  date,  since,  as  Tiraboschi  tells  us,  the  year  1494 
is  given  as  the  date  of  his  birth  solely  on  the  authority  of  the 
comparatively  modern  inscription  at  Correggio,  which  states  that 
he  died  in  1534  at  the  age  of  forty."  ^  Here  criticism  somewhat 
enlarges  the  boundaries  in  its  own  favour,  instead  of  keeping  strictly 
to  fact.  That  Lancellotti  never  mentioned  Bianchi-Ferrari  as  Cor- 
reggio's master  is  easily  proved  by  examination  of  the  codex  of  his 
Chronicle.  In  the  absence  of  any  tittle  of  evidence  for  such  an 
argument  it  cannot  plausibly  be  urged  that  there  may  have  been 
other  editions  which  have  perished,  especially  when  we  bear  in 
mind  that  Spaccini  himself  admitted  having  added  notices  both  of 
facts    and    persons    to    the    text.'''      His    own    testimony    is    of    little 

1  Lod.  Vedriani,  Historia  dcW  antiMssima  citta  di  Modeiia,  Part  ii.  p.  479. 
Modena,  1667. 

-   Op.  at.  pp.  243  and  331.  3   Op.  at.  i.  p.  12,  and  ii.  p.  10. 

■*  Adolfo  Venturi,  //  pittor  delle  grazie,  Nuova  An/ologin,  xxx.  p.  239.     Rome,  1S90. 

■'  Tiraboschi,  op.  at.  v.  p.  136. 


46  ANTONIO    DA   rORREGGIO 

weight,  seeing  that  he  flourished  some  two-thirds  of  a  century  after 
Bianchi-Ferrari.  It  now  only  remains  to  be  seen  whether,  having 
regard  to  time,  it  was  possible  for  Correggio  to  have  been  the  pupil  of 
the  latter.  The  assumption  that  our  artist  was  born  about  1494  is 
based  not  merely  on  the  inscription,  but  on  the  statement  of  Vasari, 
and,  more  important  still,  on  the  indirect  confirmation  of  contemporary 
documents.  The  fixing  of  Correggio's  birth  at  a  date  anterior  to  this 
might  indeed  give  pleasure  to  those  who  are  determined  to  make  him 
the  pupil  of  Bianchi-Ferrari,  but  certainly  not  to  those  whose  aim 
is  the  elucidation  of  historical  fact.  Dates  will  already  have  been 
forced  to  their  utmost  limits  if  we  concede  that  Correggio  studied 
under  the  Modenese  master  at  the  age  of  sixteen. 

Lancellotti  writes  as  follows:  "On  February  8,  15 10,  Master 
Francesco  di  Biancho  Frare,  an  accomplished  painter  and  excellent 
man,  died  of  an  incurable  malady,  from  which  he  had  suffered  for 
three  months."  ^  The  fact  of  this  long  illness  still  further  shortens  the 
possible  term  of  Correggio's  pupilage.  It  is  obvious  that  Correggio 
cannot  have  studied  with  him  at  Modena  during  his  illness,  and 
we  must  therefore  suppose  that  he  entered  Bianchi's  atelier  some 
time  before,  as  early,  indeed,  as  1508,  when  he  was  not  sixteen, 
but  only  fourteen  years  old.  Now  with  all  due  respect  for  modern 
criticism,  and  the  precocity  of  the  painters  of  the  Renaissance,  we 
cannot  believe  that  Pellegrino  Allegri  and  Bernardina  Aromani  would 
have  sent  this  young  boy,  their  only  son,  to  Modena,  to  study  the 
elements  of  drawing  and  painting  when,  as  we  have  seen,  they  might 
have  found  plenty  of  masters  for  him  in  Correggio.  The  difficulty  is 
greatly  increased  if  we  accept  Morelli's  theory  that  our  painter  went  to 
Modena  when  he  was  about  twelve,  and  that  a  year,  or  two  years  later, 
he  entered  the  school  of  Francia  at  Bologna.  He  says  :  "  Bianchi  was 
the  close  friend  of  Francesco  Francia  and  Lorenzo  Costa,  and  must  have 

'  Tommasino  de'  Bianchi,  called  de'  Lancellotti,  Cronaca  Modenese,  vol.  i.  p.  77. 
Parma,  1862,  The  further  hypothesis  that  among  the  masters  of  Correggio  should  be 
included  Pellegrino  Munari  is  not  worth  discussing.  See  R.  Mengs,  Opere,  vol.  ii.  p.  139 
et  scq.  Bassano,  1780.  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  244,  .md  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  9,  point  out  the 
error   which    gave    rise    to    the    inclusion   of   Michclc    and   Pier   Ilario  Mazzola  among 


CORREGGIO'S    .MASTERS  47 

painted  frescoes  with  them  in  the  Bentivoglio  Palace  at  Bologna.  There- 
fore we  may  presume  that  his  gifted  pupil  from  Correggio,  who  may 
well  have  spent  his  thirteenth  year  (1507  or  1508)  under  Bianchi's 
guidance,  was  sent  by  the  latter  to  perfect  himself  in  the  studio  of 
Francia."^  If  we  have  very  little  ground  for  belief  in  the  instruction 
of  Correggio  by  Bianchi,  there  is  still  less  reason  to  suppose  that 
he  was  ever  directly  taught  by  Francia.  We  can  even  adduce  a 
very  strong  argument  against  the  assumption  that  Allegri  worked 
in  Francia's  studio.  The  latter,  as  we  know,  entered  the  names  of  his 
two  hundred  scholars  in  his  household  account  book,  which  Malvasia 
saw  repeatedly,  and  from  which  he  made  copious  extracts.  And  is  it 
credible  that  Malvasia,  who,  to  attest  the  importance  of  Francia's 
school,  transcribed  some  thirty  names  of  its  most  obscure  members, 
should  have  omitted  the  glorious  name  of  Correggio  ?  - 

But,  when  all  is  said,  it  matters  little  who  gave  the  rudiments  of  an 
art  or  a  science  to  a  future  genius.  Of  what  historical  importance 
would  it  be  to  know  who  taught  the  alphabet  to  Dante  and  to 
Shakespeare,  or  who  instructed  Copernicus  and  Galileo  in  the  elements 
of  arithmetic  ?  Such  knowledge  is  only  valuable  when  the  master's 
art  has  affected  that  of  his  disciple  and  determined  its  course,  when 
there  has  been  in  some  sort  a  fusion  of  sentiment,  a  continuity  of 
formulae,  a  progressive  development  of  individual  methods,  when,  in 
fact,  the  tradition  of  his  teacher  has  been  the  pupil's  incentive,  spurring 
him  on  in  the  path  of  glory. 

The  most  authoritative  modern  critics  are  all  agreed  that  Cor- 
reggio's  art  marks  the  highest  development  of  the  Emilian  style, 
or  rather,  perhaps,  of  the  Ferrarese,  which  then  predominated  in  the 
Emilia.-^ 

Each    school    aimed    at    perfection    of    form    and    colour    from    a 

'  L(  opere  dei  maestri  italiani  nelle  gallirie  di  Monaco,  Dresda  e  Berlino,  p.  122. 
Bologna,  1886. 

2  C.  C.  Malvasia,  Felsi7ia  Piitrice,  i.  p.  56.     Bologna,  1844. 

^  The  credit  of  having  first  given  attention  to  this  point  belongs  to  Giovanni  Morelli, 
op.  cit.  p.  121  et  seq.,  and  Italian  Painters,  p.  223  et seq.  London,  1892.  -His  conclusions 
were  confirmed  by  Gustavo  Frizzoni,  Arte  italiana  del  Ritiascimento,  p.  354  et  seq.  Milan, 
1891.  Ad.  Venturi,  //  pittor  delle  grazie.  J.  P.  Richter,  Correggio,  in  Kunst  und 
Kiinstkr  des  Miitelalters  und  der  Neuzeif,  edited  by  Dr.  R.  Dohnie.     Leipzig,  1879. 


4»  ANTONIO    DA    (^ORREGGIO 

special  standpoint.  The  achievement  of  typical  beauty  was  the 
work  of  heroic  efforts  and  patient  labours,  of  many  years  and  many 
artists.  Giorgione  and  Titian  gave  its  crowning  splendour  to  Venetian 
art,  Leonardo  and  Andrea  del  Sarto  to  that  of  Tuscany,  Raphael 
to  that  of  Umbria.  It  was  Correggio's  task  to  assimilate  all  the 
elements  of  Ferrarese  art,  to  invigorate  and  amplify  them  by  study,  to 
vivify  them  by  his  genius.  In  spite  of  the  great  admiration  he  felt 
for  Mantegna,  tradition,  surroundings,  and  his  own  noble  and  refined 
nature,  all  combined  to  preserve,  both  in  the  style  and  sentiment  of  his 
creations,  the  expressive  simplicity  of  the  painters  who  shed  lustre 
on  the  cities  of  the  Estensi  and  the  Bentivogli  ;  therefore  he  re- 
mained faithful  to  the  art  of  the  Ferrarese,  and  more  especially  to 
that  of  Lorenzo  Costa  and   Dosso. 

The  city  of  Correggio  lay  in  the  midst  of  Reggio,  Modena,  Carpi, 
Bologna,  Ferrani,  and  Mantua.  Throughout  this  region,  when  Allegri 
was  a  boy,  the  spirit  of  Ferrarese  art  had  been  disseminated,  either  by 
teaching  or  by  the  works  of  the  school.  Venturl  says  :  "  At  some 
historic  moments  desires  and  tendencies  manifest  themselves  in  given 
districts,  a  new  ideal  takes  shape,  dispositions  are  revealed,  which 
determine  in  a  general  way  the  forms  that  the  new  artist  must  receive 
and  perfect.  He  can  no  more  resist  these  forces  than  he  can  help 
adopting  the  dialect  of  those  among  whom  he  first  learns  to  speak." 
And  he  continues  thus  :  "  About  the  year  1510,  when  Correggio  was 
a  youth,  Ferrara  still  sheltered  within  her  walls  the  descendants  of 
those  artists  whose  development  was  mainly  due  to  Lionello  d'Este,  the 
cultured  prince  who  scattered  the  seed  of  art  over  his  territory  with  so 
lavish  a  hand.  Among  those  who  had  obeyed  the  summons  of  the 
Lord  of  Ferrara  were  Pisanello,  greeted  by  the  lays  of  the  Veronese 
Guarino,  and  a  chorus  of  other  poets  ;  Jacopo  Bellini,  father  of  the 
founders  of  the  Venetian  school  ;  Mantegna  and  Pier  della  Francesco, 
the  one  bringing  with  him  the  first-fruits  of  his  art,  the  other  the 
science  of  perspective.  And  others  again  :  Roger  van  der  Weyden, 
who  came  from  Flanders  with  his  triptych,  and  the  secret  of  painting 
in  oils ;  Alfonso  of  Spain,  who  adorned  the  studio  of  Belfiore,  where 
Lionello    d'Este  loved  to  retire  with   learned    men  and    books;  and 


ARTISTS    OF    FKRRAKA  49 

Angclo  of  Siena,  called  I'arrhasius,  the  painter  of  the  Muses  described 
by  Ciriaco  of  Ancona,  who  declared  that  bees  might  l)e  deceived 
by  the  llowers  that  shone  in  the  grass  at  the  feet  of  Melpomene. 
These  and  many  other  artists  from  all  quarters  who  flocked  to  I'^errara 
laid  the  foundations  of  a  school  of  painting  remarkable  for  its  robust 
Northern  character.  Cosme  Tura  arose,  a  restless  seeker  after  truth, 
whose  brush  surprised  all  the  secrets  of  flesh-tints,  who  carried  ex- 
pressive power  to  the  verge  of  grimace,  and  movement  to  the  verge  of 
violence  and  exaggeration.  Almost  at  the  same  time  appeared  Fran- 
cesco della  Cossa,  who  peopled  the  great  hall  of  the  Schifanoia  Palace 
with  his  high-cheeked  divinities,  and  the  altars  of  Bologna  with  his 
austere  saints.  Chief  among  the  artistic  heirs  of  these  two  masters  were 
Ercole  de'  Roberti  and  Lorenzo  Costa.  The  former,  full  of  vigour 
and  dramatic  ardour,  left  a  pictorial  monument  in  Bologna  which 
inspired  one  of  Vasari's  most  powerful  pieces  of  description.  His  heirs 
were  the  disciples  of  Cossa  ;  Costa  meanwhile  had  shared  the  kingdom 
of  art  with  Francia  at  Bologna.  A  passion  for  effects  won  by  fore- 
shortening, great  vivacity  in  composition,  and  a  delicate  feeling  for 
landscape,  remained  the  essential  characteristics  of  the  next  generation 
in  this  school.  But  by  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  its 
art  had  become  enfeebled  ;  it  had  lost  its  way  in  a  maze  of  formuke, 
and  was  already  sinking  into  decrepitude.  Costa  himself,  who  had 
drawn  his  first  inspiration  from  Roberti,  and  had  much  in  common 
with  him,  gradually  lost  the  verve  that  characterised  his  early 
works.  By  the  first  years  of  the  sixteenth  century  his  youthful 
robustness  had  entirely  disappeared  ;  his  figures  seem  to  have 
dwindled  ;  their  attitudes  are  constrained  and  affected,  their  heads 
sunk  between  their  shoulders. 

Costa  had  several  scholars  and  imitators,  the  most  gifted  of  whom 
was  Ercole  Grandi,  who  worked  in  the  Calcagnini  Palace  at  Ferrara, 
where  he  depicted  the  joyous  life  of  the  Renaissance,  painting  around 
an  open  gallery,  adorned  with  Oriental  carpets,  flower-crowned  maidens 
with  musical  instruments,  boys  with  monkeys,  buffoons,  courtiers, 
cavaliers,  musicians,  and  fair-haired  women.  Grandi's  vivacity,  his 
force  of  colour,  the  deep  poetic  feeling  of  his  landscapes,  which  seem 

u 


so  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

to  quiver  in  azure  space,  entitle  him  to  the  first  place  in  what  may  be 
called  the  Costesque  cycle  at  Ferrara.  He  was  also  the  most  versatile 
of  the  many  artists  who  worked  there  from  the  beginning  of  the 
sixteenth  century  to  the  time  when  Correggio  completed  his  artistic 
education.^ 

The  important  and  long-sustained  influence  of  these  men  naturally 
extended  over  a  wide  district  beyond  Ferrara.  Of  Bologna  it  will  be 
unnecessary  to  speak  at  length,  for  it  is  a  matter  of  common  know- 
ledge that  the  art  especially  affected  by  the  Bentivogli  was  that  of 
the  Ferrarese  masters.  Galasso  went  to  Bologna  about  the  middle 
of  the  fifteenth  century.  Not  long  afterwards,  in  the  year  1470, 
Francesco  Cossa  arrived,  the  fame  of  his  frescoes  in  the  Schifanoia 
having  already  preceded  him.  From  1480  to  14S6,  Ercole  Robert! 
was  living  at  Bologna,  where  he  was  joined  by  Costa  in  1483. 
Bolognese  writers  long  asserted  that  Costa  was  the  pupil  of  Francia, 
but  Francia  himself  only  began  to  practise  painting  at  about  this 
time,  having  previously  worked  as  a  goldsmith.  The  derivation  of 
Lorenzo  Costa's  art  from  that  of  Roberti  will  be  evident  to  every 
attentive  student  of  the  Triitiuplis  in  the  Bentivoglio  Chapel  at  San 
Giacomo.  In  course  of  time  Costa,  after  having  inspired  Francia, 
was  in  his  turn  inspired  by  the  latter,  becoming  more  delicate  in 
form  and  more  brilliant  in  colour  under  his  suave  influence.  Hence 
it  is  not  unreasonable  to  suppose  with  Meyer-  that  the  reminiscences 
of  Francia  discerned  by  Morelli  in  Correggio's  youthful  works,  may 
have  been  transmitted   to  him   by  Costa. 

In  Modena,  meanwhile,  art  developed  steadily  on  Ferrarese 
lines.  It  is  well  known  that  several  Modenese  artists  worked  with 
Francia  and   Costa. 

"  The  harsh  realism  and  characteristic  vigour  of  the  Modenese 
painters,  the  Erri,  recall  the  art  of  Cosine  (Tura)  and  of  Costa  ; 
Bartolomeo  Bonascia  also  shows  himself  a  close  follower  of  the  latter 
master  in  various  details  of  his  sculptured  reliefs,  while  in  the  flesh- 
less  angularity  of  his  heads  Bianchi  Ferrari  reflects  the  mannerism 
of  Tura  in  the  same  manner  as  does  Ercole  Roberti  ;  Pellegrino 
'  Ad.  VuiUuri,  h  piltor  dellc  grazie,  pp.  234-37.  -  Correggio,  p   69. 


Munari,  called  by  \'asari  'the  ornament  of  his  centur)-,'  was  originally 
a  disciple  of  Bianchi,  but  gradually  approached  more  and  more  closely 
to  Lorenzo  Costa,  the  head  of  the  Ferrarese  school  in  his  day."  ^ 

Fcrrarese  influence,  which  began  to   decline  in   Refrgio,  died  out 


almost  entirely  in  Parma,  whose  artists  were  turning  to  Lombardy 
and  Venice  for  inspiration.  But  of  this  we  shall  have  more  to 
say  when  we  deal    with   the  state   of  art  in   that   city  at   the   time   of 

1  Ad.  Venturi,  II  pi//or  delk  t^razie,    p.    239.      La   pitluni  modencsc  ;ii/  seco/o    AT. 
Archivio  storico  dcir  Arte,  iii.  i>.  379.     Rome,  1890. 


52  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Correggio's  advent.  The  Maineri  from  Bologna  and  Ferrara,  Simone 
Fornari,  and  Cesare,  whose  works  betray  the  influence  both  of 
Robert!  and  of  Mantegna,  were  meanwhile  working  in   Reggio.^ 

In  Correggio  the  Ferrarese  tradition  likewise  prevailed.  Among 
the  best  of  the  artists  who  flourished  there  in  the  early  years  of  the 
sixteenth  century  we  hear  of  one  Bartolomeo  da  Ferrara,  called 
Brason ;  the  St.  Lucy,  already  referred  to,  in  the  Church  of  San 
Francesco,  is  distinctly  Ferrarese  in  character,  and  the  sculptures  of 
the  Palazzo  dei  Signori  recall  those  of  the  Palazzo  dei  Diamanti  in 
Ferrari,  while  we  learn  from  a  description  of  certain  frescoes  that 
Cesare  da  Reggio  was  working  there  from  1507  to  1508.  Our  painter 
thus  received  his  first  impressions  of  Ferrarese  art  before  he  quitted 
his  native  city.  But  it  is  of  more  importance  to  note  that  his  acquaint- 
ance with  Costa's  work  must  have  dated  from  his  childhood,  for  there 
was  a  picture  by  the  master  in   the   Church  of  San  Francesco. - 

Thus,  at  the  most  glorious  period  of  the  Renaissance,  we  mark  the 
rise  throughout  the  wide  Emillan  territory  of  a  very  individual  art, 
which,  if  it  cannot  compete  in  ideality  and  resthetic  charm  with  that 
of  Florence  or  of  Venice,  may  yet  bear  comparison  with  these  by 
virtue  of  its  masculine  vigour  and  profound  sincerity. 

'  C.  ('nm|)Ori.  Gli  aiiisfi  italiaiii  e  sliaiticri  )icgU  stati  estensi.  G.  B.  Venturi,  Notizie 
(U  aiiiiti  iY!:;i:;i(i//i  noii  yiconlati  dal  Tinihoschi.  Modena,  1883.  Fr.  Malaguzzi-Valeri, 
Notizie  di  ar/is/i  irggiaHi.  cil.  -  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  43. 


I 

I 


I 


CHAPTER    IV 

CORREGGIO    IN    MANTUA 

INFLUENCE    OF    MANTEGNA — IMAGINARY   JOURNEYS    'JO    ROME    AND    MILAN — LORENZO 
COSTA,   DOSSO,  AND   LIONLRUNO  -   PICTURES    AT    MANTUA    ATTRIBUTED    TO    CORREGGIO. 

THE  affinity  of  Correggio's 
art  to  that  of  Mantegna, 
and  the  enlargement  of 
the  master's  PY^rrarese  style 
under  the  influence  of  the  great 
Vincenzan's  works,  have  been 
over  -  emphasised  by  some 
writers  ;  others,  again,  have  en- 
tirely ignored  this  influence  ;  and 
later  critics,  in  reopening  the 
question,  have  hardly  given  it 
due  importance. 

It     was    generally    supposed 
in   the   seventeenth    century   that 
Correggio  was  the  pupil  of  Man- 
tegna.     Francesco  Scannelli,  in  his  Rlurocosvto  dclla  pittitni,  printed 


54  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

at  Cesena  in  1657,  remarks  :  "It  is  the  opinion  of  all  the  greatest 
authorities  on  painting  that  this  master  profited  by  the  solid  Instruction 
of  the  learned  INIantegna  from  his  earliest  youth."  ^  Ratti,-  Mengs,' 
and  others  not  only  received  this  opinion,  but  stated  it  as  a  positive 
fact  in  their  own  works.  When,  however,  documents  were  brought 
to  light  showing  that  Mantegna  died  in  1506,  when  Correggio  was 
only  about  twelve  (and  not  in  15 17,  as  had  been  hitherto  believed), 
some  historians,  seeing  that  personal  relations  between  the  two  painters 
could  not  be  established,  incontinendy  abandoned  all  attempts  to 
trace  the  Mantegnesque  elements  in  Correggio's  art  as  useless  and 
misleading.* 

The  obvious  rejoinder  was  not  long  withheld.  It  was  urged  with 
much  simplicity  that  though  Correggio  might  not  have  formed  himself 
in  IMantegna's  botlcga,  nor  shared  his  direct  teaching,  he  may  very 
well  have  studied  in  Mantua,  under  the  influence  of  the  master's 
works. ■'^'  Meyer,  indeed,  declares  that  Mantegna's  manner  exercised  a 
complete  and  undeniable  influence  upon  Correggio.  We,  who  hold  his 
cviivrc  to  be  the  logical  outcome  of  Emilian  formulae,  cannot  accept  the 
famous  critic's  theory  in  its  entirety.  But  neither  can  we  agree  with 
those  who,  in  their  eager  insistence  on  the  Ferrarese  elements  of 
Correggio's  youthful  works,  restrict  the  Mantegnesque  to  some  few 
motives  and  reminiscences,  the  final  limit  of  which  they  consider  to 
have  been  reached  In  the  great  Franciscan  altar-piece,  now  at  Dresden. 
An  art-writer  of  repute,  pointing  out  the  traces  of  Mantegnesque 
influence  in  Cav.  Benigno  Crespl's  fine  picture  at  Milan,  "notably  In 
the  heads  of  the  floating  angels,  and  the  St.  Anne,"'"'  continues  thus  : 
"  The  head  of  the  Saint  is  almost  a  reproduction  of  a  St.  Anne  in 
the  Chapel  of  Sant'  Andrea  at  Mantua,  who  reappears  In  several  of 

1  P.  275.  -   Op.  at.  pp.  25  and  27.  ■•   Open,  i.  p.  175. 

*  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  244.     Note  to  Vasari,  iv.  p.  no. 

^  L.  Lanzi,  S/<»ia  pittoriia  (T  Italia,  vol.  iv.,  cliap.  iii.  C.  P.  Lnndon,  Vies  et  ivuvres 
des pci litres  les plus  celebres  de  toutes  les  holes — Correggio.  Paris,  1817.  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  32  : 
Blanc,  IPistoire  des  Peintres — Acole  Lombarde,  Le  Correge.  Paris,  1876.  C.  L.  Eastlake, 
Handbook  of  Painting.  Italian  Schools,  ii.  497.  London,  1874.  Meyer,  op.  cit.  p.  62 
et  scij.  M.  C.  Heaton,  Correggio,  p.  5.  London,  1890.  L.  r.uickhnnlt,  Le  Cicerone, 
ii.  ]).  713.  Paris,  1892.  C.  LiXtzov.',  /  tesori  d' arte  del/'  /talia,  \>  1S2.  Milan,  1886. 
'■■   A  mistake  for  St.  Elizabeth. 


MANTEGNA'S    INFLUENCE  ON    CORREGGIO  55 

M.integiia's  pictures."  He  refers  to  various  other  motives  in  a  [jicture 
ill  the  Uffizi,  formerly  iiscribctl  to  Titian,  but  now  recognised  as  the 
work  of  Correggio,  and  sums  up  thus  :  "  These  obvious  reminiscences 
disappear  entirely  in  the  earliest  of  Correggio's  duly  authenticated 
works,  the  altar-piece,  now  at  Dresden,  painted  in  1 514- 1515  for 
the  I'Vanciscan  church  at  Correggio.  They  prove  nevertheless 
that  Allegri  had  closely  studied  the  great  Mantegna's  works,  and 
that  the  Yincenzan  master's  forms  had  modified  the  traditions  of 
I-'errara."  Adolfo  \'enturi's  judgment  is,  so  far,  perfectly  sound. ^ 
Ikit  he  unduly  limits  the  sphere  of  Mantegnesque  Influence  in  the 
work  of  Correggio.  Far  from  disappearing  altogether  in  the  iM'an- 
ciscan  altar-piece,  reminiscences  of  Mantegna  are  more  direct,  more 
obvious,  and  more  indisputable  here  than  in  the  reputed  earlier 
works. 

The  Church  of  Santa  Maria  della  Yittoria  at  Mantua  once  owned  a 
famous  picture,  now  in  the  Louvre,  painted  by  Mantegna  for  Francesco 
Gonzaga  in  1495,  to  commemorate  the  Battle  of  Fornovo.  Under  a 
canopy  wreathed  with  foliage,  fruit,  and  flowers,  studded  with  coral 
and  gems,  and  gay  with  birds,  the  Yirgin  sits  on  a  splendid  throne,  the 
Child  standing  upon  her  lap.  Serenely  smiling,  she  e.xtends  her  right 
hand  with  a  protecting  gesture  over  Francesco  Gonzaga,  Lord  of 
Mantua,  who  kneels  below.  Behind  him  are  seen  St.  Michael,  who 
lifts  the  hem  of  the  Virgin's  mantle,  and  St.  Andrew  ;  and  to  the  right, 
St.  George,  St.  Longinus,  and  St.  Elizabeth,  prostrating  herself  before 
the  throne  ;  the  little  .St.  John  stands  on  its  base,  which  is  ornamented 
witli  the  figures  of  Adam  and  Eve  in  chiaroscuro.- 

I  n  the  Franciscan  altar-piece,  Correggio  decorates  the  base  of  the 
Yirgin's  throne  in  like  manner,  and  with  the  same  subject,  the  fall  of 
Eve.  Under  the  throne  on  which  Our  Lady  of  Victory  is  seated,  is  a 
footstool  ornamented  with  floriations  and  spirals,  which  reappears  in 
Correggio's  picture,  where  the  ornaments  are  repeated  on  a  simulated 
marble  dado.       The    small   lateral  columns  of   the    bas-relief    in    the 

1  II pittor  delle  grazie,  p.  244. 

"  Attilio  Portioli,  La  Chicsa  e  la  Maiioinia  dclla  I'ittoria  di  A.  Maiilcgiia  in  Ma/ih>va 
{Aiti  e  Memorie  dell'  Accadeinia  \'ir:^iliana.  Mantua,  1884).  See  also  this  writer's  article 
already  quoted,  La  vera  ston'a  di  un  dipinto  cclebrc. 


50  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

one   picture,   support    the   sides    of   the    throne   in   the  other.      We  are 
wiUing  to  allow  that  these  coincidences  may  have   been  the    result  less 


Altar-piece  by  Mantegii: 


of  deliberate   imitation    than   of  accident  ;    that   both  masters  adopted 
motives  in   common   use  at  the   time,  the  ''  properties,"  so  to  speak,  of 


MAXTEGNA'S    INFLUENCE    ON    CORREGGIO  57 

Lheir  art.  We  will  even  admit  that  this  identity  of  details  was  purely 
accidental  and  unpremeditated  ;  but  what  may  be  granted  as  regards 
the  minor  resemblances  we  have  quoted,  cannot  be  accepted  as  applic- 
able to  the  figure  of  the  Virgin  and  certain  portions  of  the  background. 
The  Madonna  of  Mantegna's  picture  is  transferred  almost  unaltered 
to  that  of  the  later  master  ;  her  head  is  inclined  in  the  same 
direction  and  at  the  same  angle,  her  right  arm  extended  over  the 
figure  below,  the  foreshortened  right  hand  outspread  in  a  like  gesture 
of  protection  ;  the  left  supports  the  little  body  of  the  Child  ;  the  left  leg 
is  advanced,  with  the  foot  in  profile,  the  right  drawn  back,  the  great 
toe  only  resting  upon  the  footstool.^  This  obvious  imitation  has  been 
admitted  by  every  writer  on  Correggio,  from  Lanzi  to  Meyer.  But 
his  indebtedness  to  Mantegna's  picture  is  not  confined  to  this  particular 
instance.  Many  of  its  details  reappear  in  his  later  works  ;  the  canopy 
and  ovals  are  to  be  recognised  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo,  where, 
too,  we  shall  find  many  reminiscences  of  Mantegna's  e.xquisite  Camera 
dcj^li  Sposi  at  Mantua  ;  its  garlanded  arches  crown  the  summit  of 
the  tribune  in  San  Giovanni  Evangelista  at  Parma ;  and  the  St. 
Elizabeth  greets  us  again  in  the  small  picture  formerly  belonging  to 
the  Malaspina  family,  and  now  in  the  Communal  Museum  at  Pavia. 

Thus  we  see  that  the  Mantegnesque  elements  in  Correggio's 
works  are  certainly  not  confined  to  his  youthful  pictures.  They 
persist,  indeed,  in  the  most  mature  and  admirable  of  his  master- 
pieces. 

It  will  be  well,  therefore,  to  note  a  few  more  examples  of  such 
reminiscences  as  we  have  pointed  out,  beginning  with  those  small 
early  pictures  which  demonstrate  most  clearly  that  Allegri's  artistic 
training  was  completed  in  Mantua. 

The  visitor  to  the  Uffizi  may  make  a  most  instructive  study  of  this 
kind  within  the  walls  of  the  Gallery  itself  Let  him  compare  the 
Babe  on  the  Virgin's  breast  in  the  Circuuicision  of  Mantegna's  famous 
triptych,  with  the  Child  who  leans  from  his  mother's  lap  to  listen  to  an 
angel   playing  the   viol,    in   Correggio's    small  panel,   No.    1002.      He 

1  Francesco  Verla  also  plagiarised  this  Madonna  in  a  picture  painted  in  151 1,  now 
No.  306  in  the  Brera  at  Milan. 


58 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


cannot  fail  to  be  struck  by  the  likeness,  not  only  in  the  attitude,  but 
in  the  proportions,  the  type,  and  the  sentiment.  The  children  in 
Correggio's  early  works  are  purely  Mantegnesque  ;  we  need  only 
refer  the  student  to  the    small  picture    at    Pavia,   to   the  picture    in 

the  Municipal  Museum  at 
Milan,  to  Signor  Crespi's  ex- 
ample, to  that  at  Sigmaringen, 
and  finally,  to  the  San  Fran- 
cesco altar-piece  at  Dresden. 

The  blooming,  joyous  chil- 
dren of  the  Vincenzan  and  ol 
the  youthful  Correggio  have 
not  only  a  physical,  but  a 
spiritual  likeness  ;  they  have 
the  same  air  of  astonished  in- 
quiry, the  look  of  those  who 
watch  and  listen.  They  are  not 
the  sweet,  angelic  babes  of 
other  Italian  masters,  of  Bellini, 
for  instance,  and  Cima  ;  neither 
are  they  the  sentimental  infants  of  Francia,  nor  the  pensive  cherubs 
of  the  great  Florentines  and  Umbrians,  whose  mystic  gravity  reveals 
their  future  holiness  ;  they  are  very  human  urchins,  whose  every  look 
and  movement  express  the  unconscious  expansion,  the  unthinking, 
spontaneous  impulses  of  youthful  souls  and  bodies.  In  the  small 
Virgin  and  Child  in  the  Uffizi  (No.  1025)  which  the  Medici  ac- 
quired in  the  sixteenth  century,  Mantegna  paints  the  Infant  Jesus 
struggling  to  get  down  from  his  mother's  lap,  impatient  of  her 
restraining  hands,  a  motive  little  in  accordance  with  devotional 
sentiment. 

Mantegna's  and  Correggio's  children  have  no  long  locks  streaming 
upon  their  shoulders,  and  curling  over  their  brows  ;  their  ears  and 
foreheads  are  nearly  always  bare  ;  their  wide  eyes  are  full  of  curiosity  ; 
their  little  mouths  half  opened  in  wonder.  As  Meyer  justly  remarks, 
the  winged  genii    who   hold    up    the    inscription    over    the    doorway 


riptych  in  the  Uffizi. 


JiFANTKCNAS    ]XI-I,UENCK    ON    rORRKf.GIO  59 

in    tlui    Camera    dro/i   S/>osi   arc    the    true    prc^cursors  of  Corr{'go;io's 

In  a  chapel  of  the;  Church  of  Sant'  Andrea  at  Mantua  there 
is  a  canvas  by  Mantegna,  of  lh(t  Madonna  with  St.  Joseph,  St. 
Ehzabeth,  the  Infant  Jesus,  the  Httle  St.  John,  and  one  of  the 
Magi,    painted    against  a    Iiackgrountl   of    lemon    and    orange    trees. 


This  work,  now  blackened  and  ruined  by  re-touching,  we  believe 
to  have  been,  in  its  pristine  splendour,  a  typical  example  of  those 
Mantegnesque  creations  which   most  strongly  influenced  our  painter. 

^  O/.  df.  ]).  67.  Other  writers  besides  Meyer  have  pointed  out  the  affinity  between 
the  Camera  degli  Sfosi  in  Mantua  and  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma,  among  them 
Eastlake,  Burton,  Viscount  Both  de  Tauzia,  Paul  Mantz,  &c. 


6o  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

The  attitudes  of  the  two  seated  babes,  the  extremities,  the  serene 
smile  of  the  Virgin,  the  type  of  St.  Elizabeth,  are  all  to  be  recognised 
in  the  suaver  and  more  gracious  conceptions  of  Correggio's  early 
works.  If  we  e.xamine  the  figures  of  the  little  St.  John  and  the 
St.  Elizabeth,  and  compare  them  with  those  in  Cav.  Crespi's  picture, 
and  if  we  further  compare  the  older  Saint  with  the  Elizabeth  in 
the  small  picture  at  Sigmaringen,  all  doubts  as  to  their  affinity  must 
inevitably  be  resolved.^ 

The  field    of    such  investigations   might  be    indefinitely    enlarged. 
One    of  the   flagellants    in    Mantegna's    engraving    of    Christ    at    the 


B 

.^H 

^^^^^^^H 

if  -'^^^^^^1 

^^B 

in  the  Churcli  of  S.i 


Column    suggested   the   vigorous    pose    of  the    executioner    with    his 

back  turned  to  the  spectator,  who  is  killing  St.  Placidus,  in  Correggio's 

picture   in   the    Parma  Gallery.     The  head  of  the  Saviour  in  glory, 

rising  from  among    the   worshipping  Apostles,  in  the   cupola   of  San 

Giovanni    Evangelista    in    the    same    city,    recalls     Mantegna's    dead 

Christ   in   the    Brera,    which  was    at    Mantua    till     1630.      Superficial 

1  Fritz  Harck,  Quadri  italiani  nelk  i^allerie  private  di  Germaiiia  {Air/iivio  sforico 
delt  Arte,  vol.  vi.,  p.  390.  Rome,  1893).  It  may  indeed  be  said  that  the  type  of  St. 
Elizabeth  in  Correggio's  early  works  is  one  we  recognise  in  many  of  Mantegna's  pictures. 
See  also  No.  51  in  tlie  Dresden  (lallery. 


AIANTEGNA'S    INFLUENCE    ON    CORREGGIO  6i 

dissimilarity,  arisino-  from  the  splcndiuir  of  colour  and  the  flowing 
eyes  in  Correggio's  figure,  fails  to  disguise  the  identit\'  ol  type  in  these 
two  heads  ;  we  note  the  same  arrangement  of  the  llowing  hair,  the 
same  powerful  foreshortening.  Yet  another  reminiscence  of  IMantegna 
appears  in  the  cupola  of  the  Duomo  at  Parma,  the  work  which 
represents  the  last  and  loftiest  flight  of  Correggio's  genius. 

Above  the  course  of  windows  around  the  dome  a  kind  of  balustrade 
is  painted,  supporting  a  series  of  high  torch-bearing  candelabra.  Among 
their  shafts  are  animated  groups  of  boy  genii,  some  seated,  some 
recliniuL;",   some   standing,  some   rising    from   the   ground,    an<l    gazing 


upwards  with  an  air  of  surprise  ;  others  converse  together,  or  scatter 
incense  upon  the  torches,  raising  clouds  of  perfumed  smoke.  Th(? 
germ  of  this  grandiose  conception  may  be  found  in  the  famous  cartoons 
of  the  Triuuiph  of  Julius  Cccsar  executed  by  Mantegna  for  the 
Gonzaghi,  and  now  at  Hampton  Court.  Several  engravings  of  these 
e.xist,  one  by  IMantegna  himself.^ 

A  procession  of  elephants  advances  below,  but  above  these  rise 
the  shafts  of  candelabra,  with  figures  of  youths  among  them.  One  of 
these  attendant   genii   is  in  the  act  of  lighting  a  torch,  another  leans 


1  Alberto  Rondani,  U}i  cevtcnario  in  vista,  an  article  published  in  the  journal  La 
Sardegtia,  year  xii.  p.  162  (July  6,  1893).  .See  also  C.  Vr.  Ratti,  p.  26,  and  M.  A. 
Mignaty,  Vita  del  Correggio,  chap.  i. 


62  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

forward,  resting  on  his  right  knee.  Not  only  in  its  general  conception, 
but  in  details  such  as  these,  does  Correggio's  decoration  echo  the 
jMantegnesque  idea. 

That  the  youthful  Correggio  studied  Mantegna's  works  in  Mantua 
is  evident  from  these  various  examples  of  identity  in  type  and  execution. 
But  it  is  proved  even  more  conclusively  by  his  decorative  methods, 
by  his  manner  of  foreshortening  his  figures,  by  his  tendency  to 
consider  them  in  their  relation  to  the  spectator,  and  to  give  them 
illusory  effects  of  solidity  and  of  movement  in  space.^ 

The  difficult  problem  of  treatment  in  perspective  was  confronted 
and  solved  by  Correggio  in  his  decorations  of  the  vaulted  Camera 
di  Sail  Paolo  at  Parma,  and  it  is  hardly  credible  that  at  the  age  of 
twenty-four,  he  should  have  successfully  grappled  with  this  problem 
without  the  help  of  some  victorious  precursor  in  the  same  field.  His 
genius  and  individuality  enabled  him  to  give  a  marvellous  develop- 
ment to  the  special  methods  he  adopted  ;  but  without  some  pioneer  to 
prepare  the  ground,  he  could  not  so  soon  have  shown  that  mastery 
of  perspective,  and  that  profound  knowledge  of  the  human  form  which 
enabled  him  to  produce  his  vigorous  and  inexhaustible  variety  of 
plastic  effects  in  the  rendering  of  attitude  and  movement. 

It  is  clearly  inadmissible  to  suppose  that  he  owed  this  mastery  to 
the  Ferrarese  or  the  Florentines.  Some  persons  have  contended,  and 
still  contend,  that  he  had  seen  the  works  of  Melozzo  da  Forli,  and  it  is 
curious  to  note  the  zeal  with  which  this  hypothesis  has  been  upheld, 
in  tlie  face  of  insurmountable  historic  difficulties,  when  we  know,  on 
the  other  hand,  that  he  had  every  facility  for  acquiring  the  manner  and 
forms  of  Mantegna,  and  that  he  unquestionably  studied  the  works  of 
the  latter  in  his  youth. 

It  was  first  suggested  that  Correggio  visited  Rome  by  Father 
Sebastiano  Rcsta,^  and  by  Mengs,  the  one  moved  to  this  assertion  by 
a  sort  of  academic  prepossession,  the  other  by  personal  interest !  The 
Padre  owned  some  Raphaelcsque  drawings  from  the  antique,  which  he 
was  anxious  to  sell  as  the  work  of  Correggio.  It  was  necessary  there- 
fore to  assume  that  our  painter  had   been  to   Rome,  to  study  and  copy 

'   Meyer,  p.  72.  -  See  Tiraboschi,  vi.  pp.  247-251. 


COKRECC.IOS    SUl'l'OSKi)    VISIT    •|()    ROMK  63 

them.  Mcngs  declared  his  bchcf  in  the  supposed  visit,  though  it 
did  not  occur  to  him  to  connect  it  with  the  theory  of  Correggio's 
famiHarity  with  Melo/zo's  work  ;  it  approved  itself  to  him  on  other 
grounds,  mainly  as  bringing  Correggio  into  relation  with  classic  art.^ 
Was  it  possible,  he  argued,  that  an  artist  of  genius  should  have  failed 
to  see  the  Greek  and  Roman  treasures  collected  in  the  capital  ?  Was 
it  to  be  believed  that  he  resisted  his  desire  to  sec  that  Rome  whose 
artistic  culture  had  reached  its  apogee  in  the  activity  of  Buonarroti  and 
of  Sanzio  ?  His  theory  became  an  obsession  which  enabled  him  to 
discover  reminiscences  of  antique  statues  in  Allegri's  pictures.  In  the 
young  man  lleeing  from  the  Roman  soldiers  who  capture  Christ,  a 
figure  painted  by  Correggio  in  a  small  picture  known  only  by  copies, 
INIengs  discovered  an  imitation  of  one  of  the  sons  of  Laocoon,  from  the 
famous  group  discovered  in  1506!  Such  a  comparison  shows  how 
even  an  artist  of  talent  may  be  misled  by  academic  preventions. 

Other  arguments,  of  more  artistic  weight,  were  afterwards  adduced 
by  critics  in  support  of  Resta's  practical,  and  Mengs's  classical  profes- 
sions ot  taith.  Briefly  stated,  they  were  as  follows  :  Allegri  learnt  the 
secrets  of  foreshortening  from  Marco  Melozzo ;  Melozzo's  principal 
work  was  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Apostles  at  Rome  ;  therefore 
Allegri  must  have  visited  Rome.  This  syllogism  was  upheld  by  many 
writers  on  art,  from  Padre  dalla  Valle  to  Cavalcaselle  and  Burckhardt. 
It  was  warmly  contested  by  Meyer,  but  continued  to  find  adherents, 
though  Burckhardt  finally  abandoned  it,  if  we  may  judge  by  his  silence 
on  the  question  in  the  last  edition  of  the  Cicerone.  Strange  to  say,  it 
was  also  patronised  by  those  who  insisted  on  the  artistic  affinity  of 
Mantegna  and  Melozzo,  and  explained  it  by  a  certain  commerce  or 
connection  between  the  two  schools,  due  to  Ansuino  da  Forli.  Even 
il  we  admit  that  such  relations  existed  between  the  two  masters,  it  is 
evident  that  the  example  of  one  of  them,  Mantegna  alone,  may  very 
well  have  sufficed  to  influence  Correggio.  The  best  authorities  are 
now  agreed  that  Melozzo  was  the  artistic  offspring  of  Pier  della 
Francesca,  and  that  his  affinities  with  Mantegna  are  due  to 
certain  analogies  of  temperament,  and,  in  a  still  greater  degree, 
'   Open-,  ii.  p.  14::.     Ratli,  as  is  well  known,  follows  Mengs  closely. 


64  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

to  the  results  of  artistic   evolution,  and  the  simultaneous  appearance 
or  discovery  of  certain  formulae  in  different  schools. 

While,  on  the  one  hand,  all  kinds  of  sophistries  have  been  accepted 
in  support  of  the  hypothesis  that  our  painter  visited  Rome,  on  the 
other  there  are  abundant  evidences  to  prove  that  he  was  never  in  the 
capital. 

In  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries,  a  pilgrimage  to  Rome  was 
thought  essential  for  an  artist.  Some  were  attracted  by  the  classic 
treasures  collected  there,  others  by  the  marvellous  development  of 
new  forms  in  the  hands  of  an  army  of  masters  patronised  by 
popes,  cardinals,  and  princes.  Artists  were  naturally  possessed  by  a 
desire,  amounting  almost  to  a  passion,  to  visit  the  Eternal  City,  and  to 
see  the  wonders  ancient  and  modern  culture  had  combined  to  accumu- 
late. To  use  a  phrase  of  our  own  day,  Rome  was  looked  upon  as  a 
"  school  of  perfection,"  which  many  entered  by  dint  of  privations  and 
hardships  innumerable.  To  the  biographer,  this  event  in  the  life  of 
an  artist  was  always  of  great  interest,  and  invariably  furnished  the 
text  for  a  series  of  reflections  on  his  style.  Vasari  does  not  overlook 
the  point  in  his  appreciation  of  Correggio,  and  after  lamenting  that  he 
never  visited  Rome,  where  he  might  have  studied  "  antiquities,  and 
the  best  things  in  modern  art,"  he  concludes:  "If  Antonio,  with  his 
genius,  had  gone  from  Lombardy  to  Rome,  he  would  have  done 
wonders,  and  would  have  given  trouble  to  many  who  were  esteemed 
great   in   his  day."  ^ 

Ortensio  Landi  was  no  less  impressed  by  this  misfortune.  Writing 
as  early  as  1552,  he  asserts  that  Correggio  "died  young,  without 
having  seen  Rome."  - 

Landi's  testimony  is  of  no  little  weight  when  we  remember  that  he 
was  the  guest  of  Rinaldo  Corso  at  Correggio,  and  that  he  may  have 
lieen  acquainted  not  only  with  many  who  had  known  the  painter,  but 
with  his  son  Pomponio.'' 

These  two  witnesses,  who  wrote  only  a  few  years  after  the  painter's 

>  IV.,  p.  ,,.. 

"  Sc//i'  /il'i-i  (/i  uU/ialiig/ii  a  raric  ivsc  a/'fcuioiciili,  p.  493.     Venice,  1553. 

•'   I'lmgileoiij,  iu  41.   103. 


CORREGGIO'S    SUl'POSKD   VISIT   TO    ROMI'  65 

death,  are  corroborated  by  such  indirect  evidences  as  :  the  total  absence 
of  any  Roman  elements  in  his  manner,  the  omission  of  his  name  in 
all  contemporary  records  of  a  circle  where  he  could  hardly  have  passed 
unnoticed,  and  the  fact  that  no  traces  exist  of  relations  between  him 
and  any  of  the  artists  who  llourished  in  Rome  during  his  lifetime.  It 
is  said  that  a  sign-board,  upon  which  was  painted  a  rustic  leading  a 
heavily  laden  mule,  followed  by  its  foal,  used  to  hang  over  the  door  of 
an  inn  on  the  Via  Flaminia,  near  Roaie.  This  very  mediocre  work, 
which,  to  judge  by  an  engraving  and  some  copies  must  have  been 
painted  long  after  the  death  of  Correggio,  was  traditionally  ascribed 
to  him,  and  served  to  confirm  a  popular  legend,  according  to  which 
Allegri  came  to  Rome  almost  a  beggar,  seeking  inspiration  from  the 
siil)lime  works  of  antiquity,  and  anxious  to  admire  those  of  the  great 
moderns  who  were  working  in  the  cit)-.  Exhausted  by  his  travels,  he 
halted  at  a  lonely  inn  by  the  roadside,  and,  unable  to  pay  the  host  for 
his  board  and  lodging,  he  painted  the  sign  in  discharge  of  his  debt.^ 
The  pathetic  story  loses  its  chief  interest,  however,  when  we  find  it 
impossible  to  accept  the  picture  as  the  master's  work. 

It  is  plain  that  neither  internal  evidences,  legends,  nor  traditions 
tend  to  shake  the  testimony  of  Vasari  and  Landi,  which  is,  indeed, 
supported  by  the  whole  character  of  the  painter's  work.  Correggio 
was  never  at  Rome.  If  further  proofs  were  needed,  we  have  them 
indirectly  in  many  documents.  It  will  hardly  be  contended  that  he 
visited  Rome  before  the  age  of  eighteen  or  nineteen  ;  and  the  various 
evidences  we  have  of  his  presence  in  Correggio  and  Parma  after  the 
year  1513  all  combine  to  show  that  there  was  no  interval  of  un- 
occupied time  sufficiently  long  to  allow   of  his  supposed  journey  and 

^  \\'e  learn  from  I'ungilconi  (i.  pp.  26-28,  ii.  p.  39)  that  the  panel  passed  from  the 
collection  of  Queen  Christina  of  Sweden  to  that  of  Prince  Odescalchi,  also  in  Rome  ; 
afterwards  to  that  of  the  Duke  of  Orleans  in  Paris,  and  finally  to  the  Stafford  collection 
in  London.  Ratti,  in  his  turn,  describes  a  circular  jianel,  the  head  of  a  cask,  in  fact,  on 
which  was  painted  a  "  host  bringing  some  muleteers  into  his  inn,"  and  also  states  it  to 
be  in  the  Odescalchi  collection.  It  was,  perhaps,  a  copy  with  variations,  if  not  the 
original  sign-board.  Q.  Bigi  relates,  we  know  not  on  what  authority,  that  Correggio 
painted  it  in  1513  for  a  certain  Giulio  Farini,  and  that  it  was  eventually  brought  to  Rome 
by  a  servant  of  Cardinal  Uberto  Gambara,  tlic  brother  of  Veronica  {Delia  vita  e  dcllc 
opcrc  di  A.  .1.,  p.  41).  See  also  I'ietro  Martini,  S///1I1  intoiiw  al  Coi-reggio,  pp.  55-56. 
Parma,  1S6?. 


66  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

his  sojourn  in  the  city.  Padre  Resta,  however,  again  with  an  eye  to 
the  sale  of  his  drawings,  despatched  the  artist  on  various  pilgrimages 
throughout  Italy,  to  Milan  among  other  places,  to  copy  the  works  of 
Bramante  and  of  Leonardo.^  His  statement  was  a  godsend  to  those 
who  place  Correggio  in  the  Lombard  school,  and  see  in  his  method 
of  colouring  a  mere  "  clarification  "  of  Leonardo's  manner.  That  he 
knew  something  of  Leonardo's  work  is  beyond  a  doubt ;  the  finished 
modelling  of  his  forms,  the  exquisite  gradation  of  his  tones,  and, 
in  a  still  greater  degree,  the  union  of  these  special  qualities  in 
his  manner,  all  point  to  this  conclusion.  But  there  is  not  the  slightest 
evidence  that  he  ever  saw  the  Lombard  capital,  or  worked  in  the 
school  of  the  great  master. 

We  may  therefore  return  to  Mantua,  where  Correggio's  artistic 
education  was  really  completed. 

Mantegna  and  Lorenzo  Costa  are  the  two  masters  whose 
influence,  complex  and  indefinite,  yet  unmistakable,  appears  in  all 
his  early  works.  Critics  have  further  noted  traits  of  form  and  colour 
peculiar  to  Dosso  Dossi.  As  my  readers  know,  I  do  not  think  it 
necessary  to  search  for  the  determining  causes  of  Correggio's  early 
manner  outside  the  sphere  of  Ferrarese  influence,  e.xcept,  of  course,  in 
the  case  of  Mantegna.  We  may  also  dismiss  the  theory  of  Lionbruno's 
share  in  his  development. 

But  where,  it  may  be  asked,  could  he  have  admired  the  works  of 
Mantegna,  and  come  into  contact  with  Lorenzo  Costa  and  Dosso 
Dossi  ? 

We  have  seen  that  those  of  the  Vicenzan  master's  works  he  most 
evidently  studied  were  all  in  Mantua.  Let  us  now  briefly  glance  at 
the  careers  of  the  two  Ferrarese  painters. 

Mantegna  died  September  13,  1506.  A  few  days  later  the 
Bentivogli,  hard  pressed  by  Julius  IL's  soldiery,  and  by  the  gathering 
storm  among  their  own  subjects,  lied  by  night  from  Bologna.  Among 
the  many  painters  who  held,  as  it  were,  a  semi-official  position  at 
the  Court  of  Giovanni  II.,  Francia  and  Costa  took  the  lead.  Francia 
was  a  native  of  Bologna  ;  he  had  a  house,  a  family,  a  bof/cg-a,  where 
1  'I'iraboschi,  vi.  249  ;  Uottari,  Lc//erc  artislichc,  iii.  488. 


LORENZO   COSTA 


67 


goklsmilli's  work  and  painting  were  carried  on  side  by  side,  and  a 
crowd  of  pupils.  lie  was  not  therefore  disposed  to  k;ave  the  city. 
But  the  case  was  different  for  the  Ferrarese  Costa,  ahhough  he  had 
Hved  there  over  twenty  years.  As  one  who  had  worked  ahnost 
exchisively  for  the  l')entivogh',  and  had 
received  weahh  and  honours  from 
them,  he  must  have  been  deeply 
affected  by  their  downfall,  and  the 
destruction  of  their  palace,  with  the 
precious  frescoes  he  had  himself  de- 
signed and  executed.  He  must  have 
felt  that  the  ties  which  bound  him  to 
Bologna  were  broken,  and  that  he  could 
not  stay  to  serve  the  enemies  of  his 
patron.  At  the  court  of  the  Bentivogli, 
Costa  had  been  not  only  the  artist,  but 
the  friend  and  counsellor.  He  was 
one  of  the   envoys   sent   to  Julius   H. 

upon  his  accession '  and  we  know  that  "^ 

he  was  present  at  discussions  on  matters  of  sport  between  Alessandro 
Bentivoglio  and  Bonaparte  Ghisilieri." 

When,  at  this  crisis  in  his  fortunes,  he  was  invited  by  the  Gonzaghi 
to  take  the  vacant  place  of  Mantegna  at  their  court,  he  must  have 
hailed  the  summons  as  providential.  We  find  him  established  at 
Mantua  in  1507'',  painting  the  apotheosis  of  Francesco  Gonzaga 
in  the  palace  of  San  .Sebastiano  ;  his  next  great  work  was  the  famous 
Alli\o-ory  of  the  Court  of  Isabella  d'Este,  painted  for  the  duchess's 
private  cabinet.  The  scene  is  laid  on  the  bank  of  a  river  ;  poets, 
musicians,  ladies  and  cavaliers  disport  themselves  in  the  foreground, 
while  Cupid  crowns  Isabella  beyond.  Costa  also  painted  a  mythological 
piece,  with  Apollo,  Venus,  Cupid,  Orpheus  and  Mercury,  for  the 
same  room. 


'  A.   Gliisclli,    Mciiuiric  di  Bologna,    MSS.  in   the    University   Library  at    Bologna, 
X.  p.  296.  -  Arcliivio  storico  dvlf  ar/c,  v.  p.  137. 

2  Ad.  Vcnturi,  Lorenzo  Costa  {Arc/iivio  storico  deir  arte,  vol.  i.  p.  251,  1889). 


68  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGCzIO 

We  need  not  linger  here  over  his  other  works,  his  artistic  gifts, 
and  the  rewards  heaped  on  him  by  the  Gonzaghi.  He  remained  with 
them  until  his  death  on  March  lo,  1535,  just  a  year  after  that  of 
Correggio. 

As  to  Dosso,  we  know  from  contemporary  documents  that  he  was 
in  Mantua  in  1512,  when  he  painted  a  picture  "with  eleven  human 
figures  "  for  the  Palace  of  San  Scbastiano.^ 

The  conclusion  to  which  all  the  facts  above  stated  point  is  perfectly 
simple    and   obvious ;    it  is  not  to    be    assailed    by  any    critical    pre- 


possession. It  is  undeniable  that  in  the  youthful  works  painted  by 
Correggio  in  and  about  1512,  we  trace  the  influence  of  pictures  by 
Mantegna  at  Mantua  ;  Ferrarese  inspiration  is  no  less  evident  in  his 
forms  and  colour,  which  are  closely  allied  to  those  of  Costa  and  Dosso, 
the  two  Ferrarese  masters  working  in  Mantua  at  the  time.  We  cannot 
but  conclude  from  these  facts  that  Mantua  was  the  city  to  which  Antonio 
Allegri  passed,  perhaps  from  his  uncle  Lorenzo's  studio  ;  that  it  was 
here  he  supplemented  the  modest  instruction  he  had  already  received, 
and  formed  his  characteristic  style.  We  may  very  reasonably  presume 
1  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  45.     C.  dArco,  ii.  p.  79. 


rORREC.C.IO    AT    MANTUA  (>9 

that  his  arrival  at  Mantua  and  his  sojourn  in  the  city  took  place 
between  1311  and  15 13,  when  he  was  from  seventeen  to  nineteen 
years  old,  for  there  is  no  mention  of  his  presence  at  Correggio  at 
this  time  in  any  contemporary  documents.  In  these  we  find  no 
reference  whatever  to  him  between  January  12,  151  i,  when  he  acted 
as  sponsor,  and  the  summer  of  15 14.  We  cannot  doubt  that  he 
spent  this  time   in    Mantua. 

Meyer  is  of  opinion  that  Correggio  had  no  personal  relations  with 
the  artists  of  the  city,  but  that  he  studied  their  works. ^  We  cannot 
agree  with  him.  The  echoes  of  Mantegna  we  note  in  many  of  Cor- 
reggio's  pictures  are  sufficiently  explained  by  his  study  of  the  master's 
works  ;  but  in  the  case  of  Costa  and  Dosso  we  are  inclined  to  believe 
in  direct  influence,  that,  indeed,  of  the  master  on  the  pupil.  From  them 
he  seems  to  have  acquired  not  only  form,  but  his  individual  use  ot 
colour  ;  and  we  know  that  "  chromatic  tonality,"  the  secret,  in  short, 
of  colour,  is  not  to  be  discovered  by  the  most  earnest  study  of  finished 
works,  such  secrets  being  always  jealously  guarded  by  particular 
schools  and  masters.  Bandinello  is  known  to  have  begged  Andrea  del 
Sarto  to  paint  his  portrait  on  purpose  to  observe  his  method  of  using 
colour  and  mixing  tints.  Andrea  detected  the  trick  ;  he  took  care  to 
baffle  Baccio's  curiosity,  and  proclaimed  the  ill-success  of  the  stratagem, 
which   was  universally  condemned  as  a  very  disgraceful  action. - 

In  151 1  Correggio  was  decimated  by  the  plague.  Among  the 
many  victims  were  the  painters  Giovanni  di  Pletro  and  Bernardino  di 
Luchino,  and  the  French  General,  Charles  d'Amboise.  Terrified  at 
the  violence  of  the  epidemic,  many  persons  sought  to  escape  infection 
by  flight.  The  Correggesque  historians  Antonioli,  Bulbarini,  and 
Pungileoni  tell  us  that  some  of  the  Signori  repaired  to  Mantua,  the 
youthful  painter  following  in  their  train,  while  Veronica  took  refuge 
with  her  widowed  mother,  Alda  Pia.^^  Correggio's  return  to  his 
native  city  is  attributed  to  a  like  cause,  the  appearance  of  the  plague 
in  Mantua  in  1513.'* 

No  authority  is  quoted  for  these  statements.     They  were   probably 

1   Correggio,  p.  74.  -  II  libro  ih-i  co/on\  p.  6  cl  seg.     Bologna,  1SS7. 

^  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  30.  ■■   Of',  at.  i.  p.  35  ;  ii.  p.  51. 


70  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

mere  reports,  which,  in  the  course  of  transmission  from  one  biographer 
to  another,  grew  into  positive  assertions  by  a  very  common  process. 
But  though  history  is  silent  as  to  the  exact  time  and  manner  of 
Ailcgri's  sojourn  in  the  city  of  the  Gonzaghi,  and  though  we  may  not 
be  incHned  to  accept  the  outbreaks  of  plague  at  Correggio  and 
Mantua  as  the  determining  causes  of  his  travels,  his  own  works  prove 
conclusively  that  by  15 13  he  had  been  in  Mantua,  had  studied  the 
works  of  Mantegna  (who  died  in  1506)  and  those  of  Costa  and  Dosso, 
who  were  then  working  there. 

We  see  no  reason  whatever  for  the  opinion  of  certain  critics  as  to 
the  supposed  influence  of  Lorenzo  Lionbruno  on  the  early  work  of 
Correggio.^  At  the  time  of  our  painter's  arrival  in  Mantua,  if  this 
took  place,  as  it  almost  certainly  did,  about  1511,  Lionbruno  was  only 
twenty-two  years  old.  Then,  and  for  some  time  afterwards,  he  re- 
ceived orders  for  work,  not  directly,  but  through  the  medium  of 
Lorenzo  Costa,  or,  as  contemporary  documents  put  it,  "  by  relation  or 
commission."  He  was  evidently  at  the  very  outset  of  his  career. 
Some  ten  years  later,  indeed  (when  Correggio  had  decorated  the 
Camera  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma  and  worked  at  the  cupola  of  San 
Giovanni),  Lionbruno  was  still  looked  upon  rather  as  a  painter  of 
brilliant  promise  than  as  an  approved  master.  On  INLarch  10,  1521, 
Federigo,  Marquis  of  Mantua,  wrote  thus  to  Baldassarre  Castiglione  : 
"  Knowing  the  e.\cellent  talents  of  our  painter.  Master  Lorenzo 
Lionbruno,  and  seeing  from  his  works  what  a  firm  foundation  he  has 
laid  for  the  art  he  practises,  whence  we  have  good  hopes  of  his 
success  in  his  calling,  we  have  determined  he  shall  lack  no  means  of 
attaining  to  that  hoped  for  perfection  which  will  be  an  honour  alike 
to  us  and  to  our  native  place.  And  as  we  believe  a  visit  to  Rome 
will  greatly  benefit  him,  because  he  will  there  see  many  things  worthy 
of  imitation,  we  have  persuaded  him  to  go  thither  and  remain  for  a 
time  and  have  given  him  the  means  so  to  do."  -     We  can  hardly  suppose, 


1  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  33  ;   ii.  pp.  46,  47.     Charles  Yriartc,  Isahcllc  if  Este  ct  Ics  Artistes 
dc  son  temps  {Gazette  des  Beaux  Arts,  xiii.  \>.  195). 

2  Girolamo  Prandi,  Notizie  storiclie  spettanti  hi  vita  e  ie  ipeie  di  Lore)izo  Lionhntno. 
Mantua,  1825. 


CORREGGIO    AT    .MANTUA  71 

therefore,  that  the  pictures  this  man  was  painting  some  ten  years  earher 
to  Costa's  orders  can  have  exercised  any  strong  intluence  on  Correggio, 
an  artist  but  Uttle  younger  than  himself,  and  of  a  very  different  tempera- 
ment. When  Allegri  arrived  in  Mantua,  Lionbruno  was  making  his 
first  essays  as  a  painter  ;  he  produced  nothing  of  importance  until  some 
time  after  the  other  had  left  the  city.  The  points  of  contact  in  the 
works  of  the  two  young  artists  are  to  be  explained  by  the  fact  that 
both  were  inspired  by  Mantegna,  as  both  were  disciples  of  Costa. 

The  evidences  we  have  now  noted  make  it  unnecessary  to  insist 
on  those  of  documents  which  are  said  to  have  existed,  and 
possibly  still  exist,  at  Mantua.  Lanzi,  relying  on  the  statement  of 
Leopoldo  \'olta,  declared  that  his  name  occurred  in  the  parish 
books  of  .Sant'  Andrea  ;  but  a  careful  examination  of  these  made 
by  Pasqualc  Codde  at  the  request  of  Pungileoni  failed  to  dis- 
cover the  entry.^  Certain  pictures  at  Mantua  have  been  ascribed 
to  Correggio  by  various  writers,  from  Donesmondi  onward.  Dones- 
mondi  begins  by  attributing  to  him  the  frescoes  in  the  atrium  of  the 
church  of  Sant'  Andrea.  He  goes  on  to  state  with  tranquil  confidence 
that  he  painted  a  St.  Andrew  and  a  St.  Longinus  there  "  in  his  early 
manner,  founded  on  that  of  Mantegna  ;  an  Ascension  of  Christ,  the 
twelve  Apostles  standing  round,  in  a  broader  and  mellower  style  ;  "  and 
lastly,  an  Entombment,  "  in  a  manner  differing  altogether  from  that  of 
the  preceding,  and  much  more  beautiful,"  so  much  so,  he  concludes, 
that  intelligent  persons  wondered  "three  such  dissimilar  works  should 
have  come  from  the  same  hand."  Curbing  his  very  reasonable  admira- 
tion of  this  miraculous  versatility,  Donesmondi  proceeds  to  assign  to 
Correggio  the  four  Evangelists  on  the  pendentives  of  the  small  cupola 
in  the  north  chapel  of  Sant'  Andrea,  and  some  angels  in  chiaroscuro 
formerly  above  the  windows.  Not  content  with  this,  he  also  makes 
him  the  author  of  a  fresco  over  an  archway  in  the  Piazza  delle  Erbe, 
representing  P""rancesco  Gonzaga  kneeling  before  the  Virgin  beside  the 
horse  which  saved  his  life  in  the  battle  of  the  Taro,  and  finally  of  a 
picture  in  the  church  of  Santa  Maria  della  Vittoria.- 

1  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  13.     C.  d'Arco,  ii.  pp.  240-41. 

-  Da/t'  istoria  etxtcsiastiai  di  lUantova,  part  ii.  pp.  47,  49,  86,  and  119.    Mantua,  16 1 5. 


72  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Giovanni  Cadioli  accepted  all  these  attributions,  and  enriched  them 
by  a  contribution  of  his  own.  He  saw  in  Correggio  the  painter  ot  the 
central  roundel  in  the  vault  of  the  Camera  degli  Sposi,  where  a  group 
of  women  and  children  hanging  over  a  balustrade  look  down  into  the 
room.^ 

It  would  be  childish  to  attempt  any  serious  refutation  of  these  naive 
assertions,  unsupported  as  they  arc  by  any  particle  of  documentary 
evidence.  Contemporary  records  indeed  occasionally  contradict  them 
pointedly.  The  medallion  in  the  Camera  degli  Sposi  is  one  of  the 
most  admirable  and  best  authenticated  of  Mantegna's  works.  The 
picture  formerly  in  the  church  of  Santa  Maria  della  Vittoria,  and  now 
in  the  museum,  has  not  a  single  Correggesque  trait,  and  is  on  very 
sufficient  grounds  assigned  to  the  Mantuan  painters,  Giovanni  and 
Costantino  Medici.'-  The  other  works  described,  in  the  atrium  of  Sant' 
Andrea,  were  e.xecuted  for  the  most  part  by  Francesco  Mantegna,  the 
son  of  the  great  V^icenzan.^ 

These  felicitous  ascriptions,  based  neither  on  critical  examination 
of  the  works  in  question,  nor  on  the  discovery  of  new  documents,  and 
serving  no  end  save  that  of  confusing  historic  issues,  and  distorting 
the  true  image  of  the  artist,  nevertheless  continue  to  be  bruited  abroad 
under  the  imposing  title  of  discoveries. 

Not  long  ago  certain  Germans  recognised  the  hand  of  Leonardo  in 
some  mediocre  pictures  they  hunted  out  in  the  castle  at  Milan;  then 
we  have  M.  Charles  Yriarte  announcing  to  his  admirers  the  discovery 
of  a  work  by  Correggio  in  the  decorations  of  a  cabinet  in  the  old  castle 
of  Mantua.*  To  Yriarte's  question  :  "  When  did  Correggio  paint  these 
frescoes  ?"  we  may  answer  in  all  confidence  :   "Never." 

The  decorations  of  the  small  chamber  in  question  are  arranged  to 
suit  the  octagonal  shape  of  the  vault.  In  each  compartment  are  two 
children  supporting  a  cartel  with  symbols  .uid  mottoes.      The  central 

1  Dcsmzionc  dcllc  pilturc,  iculinn-  cJ  anhiUttiiic  di  Maulova,  yy.  35,  49.  5°.  ^i'""-!  54- 
Mantua,  1763. 

'^  Carlo  d'Arco,  op.  cit.  i.  jip.  6o-6j.  "•  'I'iraboschi,  vi.  p.  244. 

■•  Sec  article  quoted,  the  Gazette  des  Jh-m/.x  .his,  and  Correggiu's  Frescoes  i/i  the 
Castle  of  Ma/itiia,  a  letter  to  G.  B.  Intra  in  the  journal  La  Ferseveransa,  year  .\.N.\vii. 
No.  i:!,753-     ^li'-^".  Al'>'l  'o.  '895- 


FRESCO    IN    THE    CASTLF.    OF    MANTUA  y;, 

disc  simulates  a  kind  of  octagonal  terrace  like  that  of  the  Camera  dcoli 
Sposi,  with  boy  genii  leaning  over  a  balustrade,  and  one  hovering 
in  the  midst.  The  pendentives  are  decorated  with  symbolic  repre- 
sentations of  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe,  and  the  lunettes,  which 
formerly  filled  the  spaces  above  the  presses  or  wardrobes,  are  painted 
in  monochrome. 

Whatever  the  date  to  which  these  paintings  may  be  assigned, 
one  thing  is  certain.  Neither  in  proportion,  colour,  sense  of 
ornament,  nor  type  of  figure  have  they  the  slightest  affinity  with   the 


art  of  Correggio.  We  should  search  in  vain  among  his  works  for 
any  one  of  the  characteristic  features  of  these  frescoes,  hair  painted 
upon  a  crude  red  ground,  eyes  encircled  by  dark  lines,  thin  legs  with 
exaggerated  curves  in  outline,  long,  sinuous  figures,  an  afifected  grace 
of  attitude,  and  finally,  a  very  individual  type  of  foot,  with  slender 
toes,  the  great  toe  much  longer  than  the  rest — a  type  dift"ering 
essentially  from  the  short,  compact  foot  of  Correggio's  youthful 
genii.  The  foreshortening  is  very  often  faulty.  One  of  the  two 
boys  in  the  foreground  has  an  impossibly  short  arm  ;  the  other,  rickety 
legs.      The  figure  of  the  console  to  the  left  of  the  window  is  singularly 


74  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

squat  and  clumsy  la  drawing.  Not  one  among  the  band  of  children 
approaches  the  joyous,  robust  type  of  Correggio's /«///.  They  display, 
indeed,  all  the  sedate  affectation  of  court  pages. 

The  trivial  ornament,  with  heads  of  lions  modelled  on  a  dull 
yellow  ground,  and  leaves  sharply  and  heavily  defined,  whereas 
Correggio's  are  always  laid  in  with  a  full  brush  in  the  centre,  and 
faintly  touched  in  the  outlines  ;  the  manner  of  indicating  the  lights  in 
monochrome  ;  the  faulty  perspective  and  commonplace  form  of  the 
central  balustrade — all  these  details,  no  less  than  the  figures  themselves, 
negative  the  attribution  of  these  frescoes  to  the  master. 

It  is  true  that  they  have  suffered  severely  from  age  and  from  partial 
re-touching.  But  the  general  character  of  the  work  is  still  apparent 
in  parts,  and  it  is  possible  to  appraise  it,  in  spite  of  decay  and  restora- 
tions. In  the  small  portions  that  remain  intact,  we  find  a  predominant 
pink  tinged  with  violet  in  the  carnations,  for  which  there  is  absolutely 
no  parallel  among  Correggio's  warm  and  alabastrine  flesh-tints. 

Yet  Yriarte  has  the  courage  to  write  as  follows  : 

"  At  the  first  sight  of  these  little  figures  with  their  agile  movements, 
their  brilliant  yet  mellow  carnations,  and  the  play  of  light  on  their 
contours,  we  exclaimed  :  Correggio  was  here  in  his  youth,  and  this 
bears  testimony  to  his  sojourn."  In  a  letter  he  adds  that  every 
expert  familiar  with  the  characteristics  of  the  Italian  masters  must 
recognise  in  these  frescoes  the  hand,  the  grace,  the  soul,  in  short,  of 
the  great  painter  ! 

Blessed  are  the  eyes  which  can  see  these  things!  We,  unhappily, 
found  the  hand,  the  grace,  the  soul  of  Correggio  conspicuously  absent 
in  these  paintings  ! 

Correggio  undoubtedly  worked  for  the  Gonzaghi  of  Mantua,  but 
at  a  much  later  period,  and  never  in  fresco. 


HASTISED.      (Fresco 


VERONIC\     I    \MP\R\- 


CH AFTER  V 

THE    TWO    PRINCESSES 

ITR     RFL\1I0\S     WITH     CORREGGIO     AND     WITH     THF,     COURT 


1U\- 


iADELLA    II  FSTE. 

AS  Burckhardt  justly  ob- 
serves, we  shall  form  but 
an  imperfect  idea  of  the 
Renaissance  if  we  ignore  the  im- 
portance it  gave  to  woman,  and 
the  rapid  development  of  her  in- 
dividuality under  its  influences.^ 
Her  education  was  the  counter- 
part of  that  enjoyed  by  the  man. 
"  F"rom  the  moment  that  the 
neo-Latin  culture  came  to  be  re- 
cognised as  the  chief  ornament 
of  life,  no  reason  could  be  urged 
against  the  participation  of  girls  in 
its  advantages."  As  the  wives  of 
rulers,  and  the  leaders  of  court  society,  the  women  of  the  Renaissance 
^  La  civilta  del secolo  del  Rinasciiuento  in  Italia,  vol.  ii.  p.  165  cl  seq.     Florence,  1876. 


di  SaTi  Paolo  : 


76  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

were  surrounded  by  the  most  eminent  men  of  the  day.  Antonio 
Galateo  advised  Bona  Sforza  to  study  men,  since  she  was  born  to  bind 
them  to  her  chariot  wheels.      Poets  sang-  of  woman  thus  : 

"  La  farem  nostra  reina, 
Lei  sol  merta  la  corona, 
Perche  Apollo  il  suo  liquore 
Le  ha  donato  d'Elicona."  ^ 

Poetesses  and  learned  ladies  abounded,  and  Bandello's  description 
of  Countess  Cecilia  Gallerana  Bergamini,  "the  affable  and  virtuous 
lady,"  might  have  been  applied  to  many  among  them  :  "The  highest 
and  noblest  intellects  are  of  her  company.  Military  men  discuss  the 
art  of  war,  musicians  sing,  architects  make  drawings,  philosophers 
inquire  into  the  secrets  of  nature,  poets  recite  their  own  verses  and 
those  of  others."  Much  of  the  great  revival  is  due  to  women,  not 
only  by  virtue  of  their  superior  refinement,  and  the  elegance  they 
introduced  into  their  dwellings,  but  inasmuch  as  they  worthily 
encouraged  and  inspired  artists  and  men  of  letters.  The  homage  so 
justly  due  to  them  in  this  connection  was  nobly  summed  up  and 
expressed  in  the  kiss  Michelangelo  bent  his  austere  head  to  lay  upon 
the  dead  brow  of  Vittoria  Colonna. 

Few  districts  reared  and  sent  forth  so  many  accomplished  prin- 
cesses as  the  Emilia  and  the  Romagna.  Isabella  Gonzaga,  the 
typical  great  lady  of  the  Renaissance,  sprang  from  the  tragic  house 
of  the  Estensi,  which  had  provided  innumerable  great  Italian  families 
with  noble  and  cultured  wives. 

The  splendour  of  Isabella's  court  at  Mantua  was  at  its  zenith 
when  Veronica,  daughter  of  Gian  Francesco  Gambara  and  Alda  Pio 
of  Carpi,  came  to  Correggio  as  the  wife  of  Giberto. 

Her  face,  we  are  told,  was  neither  beautiful  nor  delicate,  though 
full  of  kindness,  but  this  plainness  of  feature  was  atoned  for  by  a 
magnificent  figure,  a  sweet  voice,  a  quick  wit,  and  a  cultivated  mind. 
She  wrote  sonnets  and  Latin  verse,  and,  being  sedentary  and  some- 
what lazy  in  her  habits,  had  become  an  indefatigable  reader.  She 
loved  books,  and  had  collected  a  good  library.  In  her  delightful 
1  A.  Vernarecci,  Otlaviaiw  dc'  J\'/niui,  p.  95.     Bologna,  1882. 


VERONICA   GAMP.ARA 


77 


letters,  in  which  there  is  none  of  the  "  tedious  and  almost  conventual 
severity  "  of  Vittoria  Colonna's,^  we  find  her  bent  on  the  satisfaction 
of  her  various  tastes,  ordering  flowers,  perfumes,  jewellery,  carriages, 
toys  for  her  children,  linen,  and  dresses.  "  I  want  some  IHorentine 
plush,  1  am  tired  of  Flemish,  French,  and  Fnglish  cloths."  -  To 
ensure  the  elegance  of  her  c/nvissitrc  she  has  recourse  to  her  daughter 


Costanza,  who  had  married  one  oi  the  Gonzaghi  oi  Novellara.  "  I 
send  you  a  little  velvet,  and  jiray  you  to  order  me  two  pairs  of 
slippers  before  i\\&fcics,  on  account  of  which  I  am  somewhat  before- 
hand.    The  others  were  right  as  to  height  and  all  else,  save  that  they 


R.  Renier,  Gioniak  storico  dclla  Icttcratura  iia/ia/ni,  xiv.  p.  441.     Turin,  18S9. 
Veronica  Gambara,  Rime  c  Utkrc  raccoltc  da  Fc-lice  Rizzardi,  p.  161.    Brescia,  1759. 


78  ANTONIO    PA    CORREGCxIO 

were  rather  too  large  in  the  openings.     Tell  the  shoemaker  to  make 
them  somewhat   narrower,  about  half  a  finger's  breadth."  ^ 

She  had  an  inordinate  passion  for  jewels,  and  wished  her  daughter- 
in-law  Chiara  to  possess  gems  surpassing  those  of  all  other  ladies  in 
splendour.  Having  to  send  her  to  Mantua  on  one  occasion,  she 
borrowed  additional  jewels  for  her,  to  ensure  her  appearance  in 
unrivalled  magnificence. 

Rinaldo  Corso  contrived  to  draw  a  very  pleasant  portrait  of  her 

without  suppressing  certain  unpalatable   truths.      "  If  Veronica's  face 

had  agreed  with  the  rest  of  her  person,  she  would  have 

<r*'T'_  ra         l^f'-en   faultlessly   beautiful,   and  full    of  grace  even  in 

her  old    age.       But    her    features,   though    not    ugly, 


f  I  'jWa't'  lacked  delicacy,  a  defect  which  was  amply  compensated 
r|,  ',  I  by  the  eloquence  which  flowed  from  her  lips  in  the 
'''-.'  same  measure  as  from  her  pen,  with  so  much  sweet- 

'"vERoitcVGwiuTrfA?''  ness  and  frankness  that  all  who  conversed  with  her, 
no  matter  on  what  subject,  left  her  with  an  ardent 
desire  to  return  and  listen  to  her  again.  The  excellence  of  her  consti- 
tution appeared  in  this,  that  although  she  took  very  little  exercise,  she 
kept  in  good  health  and  lived  long,  and  to  the  last  read  and  wrote 
without  the  help  of  spectacles.  She  avoided  the  open  air,  and  was 
careful  to  protect  herself  from  it.  She  ate  nourishing  foods,  and  never 
took  fresh  fruits,  nor  any  such  viands.  She  had  no  pleasure  in  games, 
her  sole  pastimes  being  to  study  and  converse  on  worthy  subjects  with 
her  friends.  Always  sober  and  affable  with  persons  of  either  sex,  and 
of  every  age  and  condition,  her  manners  were  at  once  dignified  and 
pleasing.  To  children  (of  whom,  as  saith  the  Scripture,  is  the  kingdom 
of  Heaven)  she  was  lavish  of  caresses.      By  no  means  passionate,  if  she 

1  Ford.  Rossi-Foglia,  Cc/ifii  biografici  intonio  a  ]\  G.  di  Rinaldo  Corso,  c  Icttcrc  ddla 
stcssa,  p.  28.  Correggio,  1884.  The  supposed  portrait  of  Veronica  Gambara  repro- 
duced above  belongs  to  Signor  Federigo  Gianotti  of  Correggio.  In  a  small  coat  of  arms 
in  the  corner  of  the  picture,  the  bearings  of  the  Gambari  are  quartered  with  those  of  the 
Lords  of  Correggio.  A  question  has  been  raised  as  to  the  costume,  which  some  have 
supposed  to  be  of  a  later  date  than  the  time  of  Veronica.  l!ut  the  collar  she  wears  in 
the  portrait  was  fashionable  l)ctwcen  1520  and  1530.  Qulnty,  in  his  treatise  published 
in  1527,  speaks  of  the  art  of  cnibroideriiig  sucli  collars.  Count  L.  A.  Gandini,  an 
authority  on  the  subject,  confirms  this. 


VERONICA   GA^IRARA  79 

occasionally  gave  way  to  anger  she  was  easily  appeased,  and  quick  to 
forgive  offences  against  herself.  In  civil  broils  she  was  prompt  in  her 
efforts  to  promote  peace  and  dexterous  in  bringing  it  about.  In  the 
art  of  bringing  up  her  children  nobly,  training  them  to  greatness,  and 
preserving  unity  among  them,  she  was  a  marvel,  and  a  true  example  to 
all  other  matrons  who  govern  and  have  children,  and  more  especially 
to  those  in  whose  households  discord  is,  so  to  speak,  a  hereditary 
disease.  She  has  been  accused  of  showing  an  excessive  affection  for 
her  friends  and  servants,  and  of  being  over-zealous  in  their  defence, 
and  further,  of  lending  a  willing  ear  to  flatterers,  and  of  being  easily 
deceived.  Not  that  she  claimed  immunity  for  \\cr  p7^oh'gc's,  or  allowed 
them  to  make  her  favour  a  screen  for  their  misdeeds  ;  but  when  they 
transgressed,  she  could  not  abandon  them.  Her  credulity  was  caused 
by  this,  that  she  judged  the  souls  of  others  by  her  own,  and  accounted 
all  good,  as  she  was  herself.  Her  kindness  of  heart  made  her  suscep- 
tible to  flattery,  though  she  was  naturally  humble.  But  defects  such  as 
these  are  proofs  of  purity  and  sincerity  of  sentiment  rather  than  other- 
wise, seeing  that  none  are  without  fault  in  this  life.  Her  literary  style 
was  clear  and  agreeable,  as  we  have  shown,  and  of  equal  excellence  in 
prose  and  verse."  ^ 

We  easily  discern  Veronica's  character  through  the  laudatory  periods 
of  the  worthy  cinguccentista,  and  recognise  in  her  a  woman  who  loved 
adulation,  and  staunchly  supported  those  who  skilfully  flattered  and 
managed  her. 

He  shows  us,  too,  that  her  temper  was  not  always  under  perfect 
control.  Pnit  these  touches  rather  increase  than  detract  from  our 
interest  in  her  personality,  to  which  they  give  an  air  of  historic 
vraisciiiblancc.  The  biographer's  insistence  on  the  virtues  of  his  hero 
too  often  makes  us  distrustful  of  his  guidance.  The  placid  gentleness 
proper  to  the  model  housewife  was  hardly  to  be  looked  for  in  the  lady 
of  a  house  like  that  of  the  Correggeschi,  who  not  unfrequently  passed 
from  the  cares  of  a  family  to  those  of  a  state,  and  had  to  play  the 
dangerous  game  of  politics  in  such  an  age  as  the  sixteenth  century. 

1   Rinaldo  Corso,   Vita  di  Gibcrto  III.  di  Corrcggio,  colla  vita  di   Veronica  Gambara, 
Ancona,  1566. 


8o  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Occasional  flashes  of  indignation  became  her  perfectly,  and  illuminate 
her  figure  for  the  student. 

Her  susceptibility  to  flattery  may  be  pardoned  her  in  virtue  of  her 
double  quality  of  princess  and  bluestocking.  A  certain  share  of  vanity 
has  always  been  a  weakness  of  cultured  and  powerful  women. 
Veronica,  who  united  so  many  of  their  virtues,  was  not  exempt  from 
some  of  their  failings. 

It  is  evident,  however,  that  she  had  that  greatest  of  virtues, 
sincerity.  The  very  stubbornness  with  which  she  defended  her  friends, 
even  when  in  fault,  proves  the  uprightness  of  her  heart  and  the  loyalty 
of  her  affections.  We  must  not  forget  that  in  those  days  it  was  usual 
to  sacrifice  everything  to  personal  or  political  e.xigences,  even  the  lives 
of  friends  and  brethren  ! 

Veronica  was  undoubtedly  one  of  the  most  accomplished  among 
the  literary  women  of  the  sixteenth  century.  Her  verses  are,  of 
course,  modelled  on  the  poems  of  Petrarch,  but  they  are  not  without  a 
certain  expansive  quality,  and  have  a  distinctly  personal  note.  Her 
letters,  scattered  throughout  a  number  of  pamphlets,  have  been  highly 
praised  for  their  gaiety  and  ease,  for  their  display  of  that  alertness, 
refinement,  and  witty  malice  that  characterised  the  great  lady  of  the 
Renaissance,  and  for  the  interesting  details  they  contain  of  contemporary 
life  and  manners.^ 

Her  passion  for  discussions  on  art  and  learning,  her  pleasure  in  the 
society  of  intelligent  persons,  with  whom  she  exchanged  ideas,  and 
from  whom  she  received  the  homage  and  adulation  she  loved,  and  her 
natural  desire  that  her  own  court  should  equal  those  of  neighbouring 
princes  in  dignity  and  elegance,  alike  induced  Veronica  to  gather  round 
her  a  number  of  artists  and  men  of  letters,  and  to  form  them  into  a  sort 
of  academy.  Pre-eminent  among  them  was  the  famous  Gian  Battista 
Lombardi,  or    Marchesini,   physician    and    philosopher.      Professor  of 

1  Besides  the  works  already  quoted,  see  Quirino  Bigi,  Sflpra  la  ceUbre  Contessa  Matildc 
e  Veronica  Gamhara  (Mantua,  1859),  Emilio  Costa,  Sonetti  amorosi  di  V.  G.  (Parma, 
1890),  and  Una  leitera  incdita  di  Veronica  Gamhara  {Giornalc  storico  della  letteratura 
italiana,  ix.) ;  A.  E.  Mortara,  Epistolc  cdite  per  nozze  Fadigati-Visioli  (Casalmaggiore, 
1852);  Vittorio  Cian,  Primizie  epistolari  di  V.  G.  (in  L Intermezzo,  review,  No.  12). 
Turin,  1890. 


VRRONICA    GAMBARA  8i 

logic  at  Bologna  in  i486,  and  of  medicine  at  Fcrrara  in  1490,  he  was 
invited  to  their  city  by  the  Lords  of  Correggio,  who  employed  him  in 
various  important  affairs  of  state,  and  treated  him  with  the  most  affec- 
tionate consideration  until  his  death  in  September,  1526.^  Other 
frequenters  of  Veronica's  sa/on  were  the  learned  Ippolito  Merlo,  the 
jurisconsult  Sigismondo  Augustoni,  Rinaldo  Corso,  who  afterwards 
wrote  her  life,  and  the;  physician  Annibale  Camilli.  When  in  Bologna 
in  15  15,  \'eronica  had  requested  the  latter  to  send  her  some  sample  of 
his  learning,  and  the  following  year  ,he  dedicated  to  her  a  series  of 
philosophical  pamphlets,  in  which  he  eulogises  her  learning  and  virtues, 
and  declares  that  he  owes  everything  to  her  protection. 

To  this  learned  company,  among  whom  she  habitually  lived,  we 
must  add  the  names  of  those  famous  friends  and  admirers  who  visited 
her  from  time  to  time,  such  as  Ariosto,  Bembo,  Molza,  Cappello,  Mauro, 
Antonio  Bernardi  di  Mirandola,  and  (on  two  occasions,  in  1530  and 
1532)  the  Emperor  Charles  \^ 

Nothing,  in  fact,  was  wanting  which  could  gratify  her  taste  for 
lofty  and  cultured  intercourse,  and  her  just  pretensions  to  literary 
talent. 

Among  the  friends  of  her  own  sex  who  were  often  wiih  her  were 
Ginevra  Rangoni,  the  widow  of  Gian  Galeazzo,  who  married  Lulgi 
Gonzaga  some  time  after  151  7,  and  Cassandra,  daughter  of  the  great 
captain,  Bartolomeo  Colleoni.  On  the  death  of  her  husband,  Nicolo 
da  Correggio,  In  1508,  Cassandra  had  retired  to  a  convent  founded  by 
him,  taking  with  her  her  daughter  Isotta.  She  was  afterwards  joined 
by  her  other  daughter,  Beatrice,  who  returned  from  Parma  on  the 
death  of  her  husband,  Nicolo  Sanvitale.  Both  Beatrice  (whom  Ariosto 
sang  under  the  name  of  Mavwid)  and  her  sister  enlivened  the  solitude 
of  the  cloistral  cell  with  poetry  and  song.  Well  might  it  be  said.  In  the 
words  of  Messer  Lodovico  : 

"  Oh  !    di  die  belle  e  sagge  donne  veggio, 
Oh !   di  che  cavalieri  il  lito  adorno ! 
Oh !   di  che  amici,  a  chi  in  eterno  deggio 
Per  la  letizia  ch'  'an  del  mio  ritorno  ! 


Pungileoni,  ii.  pp.  34  and  199. 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

Mamma  e  Ginevra,  e  V  altre  da  Correggio 
Veggo  del  molo  in  su  I'estremo  corno ; 
Veronica  da  Gambara  e  con  loro 
S'l  grata  a  Febo  e  al  santo  aonio  coro." 


Many  others  sang  her  praises  besides  the  great  Ferrarese  poet. 
Among  the  most  famous  of  her  eulogists  were  Vittoria  Colonna,  Casio, 
Sannazaro,  Trissino,  Ruscelli,  Lilio  Giraldi,  Bernardo  Tasso,  who 
spoke  of  her  as  "  the  glory  of  the  feminine  sex,"  Bandello,  Varchi,  who 
lauded  her  "  fluent  and  agreeable"  speech,  Dolci,  Bembo,  Molza,  and 
Giovanni  della  Casa.  Later,  Possevino  called  her  the  "  Italian  Sappho." 
Charles  V.  told  her  she  was  dear  to  him  for  many  reasons,  but  chiefly 
for  "  her  virtue  and  renown." 

Neither  cares  of  state,  nor  the  desire  to  play  a  brilliant  part  in 
society,  were  suffered  to  interfere  with  her  duties  to  her  children,  to 
whom  she  showed  a  truly  ideal  devotion.  Her  son  Ippolito  followed  a 
military  career,  and  fought  under  Charles  V.  at  the  fall  of  Florence. 
To  him  her  constant  theme  was  the  fame  of  his  ancestors,  one  of  whom 
had  written  a  treatise  on  the  heroic  greatness  of  the  ancient  Romans. 
To  her  son  Girolamo,  who  had  entered  the  Church,  she  spoke  of  Azzo 
of  Correggio,  and  how  he  had  been  esteemed  by  Petrarch,  whom  he 
had  made  archdeacon  of  the  Parmesan  church.  Veronica  never  saw 
this  cherished  son  in  the  crimson  robes  of  the  cardinalate,  with  which 
he  was  invested  some  time  after  her  death.  He  had  his  mother's 
talents,  and  a  character  of  much  the  same  cast — honest  and  good  on 
the  whole,  but  hasty  and  choleric  upon  occasion.  He  acted  as  pleni- 
potentiary for  the  Farnese  family  at  the  Congress  of  Ghent,  and  at  one 
time  seemed  a  not  unlikely  candidate  for  the  papacy  after  Pius  V.  But 
his  understanding  with  the  Court  of  Spain  was  the  true  cause  of  his 
rejection,  though  his  amour  with  Claudia  Rangoni  had  already 
brought  him  into  discredit. 

This,  however,  was  some  time  after  Veronica's  death,  which  took 
place  on  June  13,  1550.  "  On  the  following  day,"  says  Rinaldo  Corso, 
"  she  was  borne  to  the  church  of  San  Domenico,  outside  the  walls  of 
Correggio  (where  nearly  all  the  lords  of  the  city  were  buried),  with  a 
sprig  of  olive  and  one  of  laurel,  her  worthy  emblems,  in  her  mouth." 


Vl'RONICA    CAMBARA  83 

]\Iy  readers,  who  have  seen  in  a  former  chapter  how  many  artists 
were  working  in  Correggio,  and  to  whom  I  have  now  attempted  to  give 
some  idea  of  the  intellectual  life  of  the  court,  can  judge  whether  our 
painter  actually  grew  up  in  a  remote  hamlet,  or  in  a  place  peculiarly 
favourable  to  the  development  of  his  genius. 

When  X'eronica,  a  bride  of  twenty-four,  arrived  in  Correggio  in 
150S,  Antonio  was  but  fourteen,  though  he  had  already  shown  signs  of 
his  exceptional  gifts.  Many  who  were  interested  in  the  development 
of  his  precocious  genius  brought  him  under  the  princess'  notice. 
She  conceived  the  most  lively  hopes  of  his  future,  and  had  him 
constantly  about  her.  Mad  we  not  the  fear  of  positive  criticism 
before  our  eyes,  with  its  insistence  on  documents,  and  its  legitimate 
scorn  for  mere  hypothesis,  however  natural  and  obvious,  we  might 
indulge  in  one  of  those  flights  of  fancy  to  which  the  art-historian 
of  a  less  scientific  age  was  prone.  The  Virgin  in  Correggio's 
JMadonna  ami  Child  tcitk  the  Infant  St.  John,  painted  about  15 1 2-- 
15 15,  is  of  a  peculiar  type,  by  no  means  beautiful,  though  her 
smiling  sweetness  of  expression  redeems  her  homeliness  of  feature. 
Is  this  happy  mother  a  portrait  of  the  good  Veronica  herself,  whose 
two  little  sons  were  born,  the  one  in  January,  15 10,  the  other  in 
February,  151 1  ?  But  we  turn  resolutely  from  such  conjectures  to 
questions  of  sober  fact. 

Among  such  we  may  certainly  class  the  kindly  and  intimate  rela- 
tions which  subsisted  between  the  painter  and  the  reigning  house  to 
the  last  days  of  his  life. 

In  1 52 1  he  had  an  audience  of  Manfredo  in  the  palace  in  connec- 
tion with  a  deed  of  gift,  by  which  his  maternal  uncle,  Francesco 
Aromani,  made  over  to  him  all  his  effects.  The  prince's  intervention 
may  have  come  about  merely  as  a  matter  of  administrative  routine, 
and  we  by  no  means  rely  upon  this  alone  as  a  proof  of  his  intimacy 
with  the  painter.  But  we  have  other  evidence  of  a  less  ambiguous 
kind.  In  1532  Correggio  assisted  at  the  drawing  up  of  the  act 
whereby  Manfredo  appointed  Paolo  Brunorio  his  proxy,  and  em- 
powered him  to  receive  reinvestiture  on  his  behalf  for  all  feoffs 
held  by  the  Lords  of  Correggio  under  the   Emperor  Charles  V.      It 


84  ANTONIO    ])A    CORREGGIO 

is  evident,  therefore,  that  he  was  associated  with  matters  of  great 
interest  and  importance  to  the  ruling  family.  But  the  crowning 
proof  of  the  cordial  relations  existing  between  them  is  to  be  found 
in  the  fact  that  on  January  24,  1534,  he  acted  as  one  of  the  witnesses 
to  the  settlement  of  twenty  thousand  gold  scudi  on  Chiara,  daughter 
of  Gianfrancesco  of  Correggio,  on  the  occasion  of  her  betrothal  to 
Ippolito,  son  of  Giberto  and  Veronica  Gambara.^  Thus,  on  the  most 
joyful  and  solemn  event  in  her  life,  the  betrothal  of  her  first-born 
to  his  cousin,  the  great  lady  chose  the  famous  painter  for  her  witness, 
preferring  him  before  princes  and  captains  of  her  own  caste.  Never 
can  she  have  more  deeply  felt  the  charms  of  a  friendship  founded  not 
only  on  kindness,  but  on  a  mutual  love  and  worship  of  art.  The  Muse 
and  the  painter  joined  hands  to  promote  the  happiness  of  two  youthful 
lovers. 

It  is  supposed  that  Correggio  accompanied  Veronica  on  various 
occasions  to  Bologna,  where  she  had  many  friends.  She  visited  the 
city  several  times,  and  is  known  to  have  gone  thither  in  15 15,  to  be 
present  at  the  meeting  of  Francis  I.  and  Leo  X. 

It  is  on  this  occasion  that  Correggio  is  supposed  to  have  uttered  the 
historic  exclamation  :  "  I  too  am  a  painter ! "  before  Raphael's  St. 
Cecilia.  But  the  story  will  not  bear  examination,  for  Sanzio's  famous 
picture  was  not  at  Bologna  in  15  15.  The  utterance  must  be  referred 
to  some  later  visit,  and  it  is,  indeed,  far  more  likely  to  have  escaped 
the  painter  at  a  mature  age,  when  he  also  had  produced  his  master- 
pieces, than  in  his  youthful  days.  It  is  highly  improbable  that  he, 
whose  home  was  so  near  to  Bologna,  should  never  have  visited 
the  city  to  see  the  famous  works  of  art  collected  there.  Nor  can 
we  suppose  that  he  never  went  from  Correggio  to  Ferrara,  the 
foils  cl  origo  of  his  own  art,  nor  from  Parma  to  the  neighbouring 
Piacenza,  where  Raphael's  most  sublime  work  crowned  the  altar  of 
San   Sisto.- 

Veronica  was  at  Bologna  again,  it  seems,  in  1527;  she  certainly 
went  there  in  1529  to  visit  her  brother  Uberto,  governor  of  the  city  at 

'  Pungileoni,  i.  pji.  239  and  247  ;  ii.  p]).  127,  192-3,  and  251. 
^  The  Madonna  di  San  Sisto,  now  at  Dresden. 


I'.ARI.V    WORKS    AT    CORRIXJCIK)  85 

that  date ;  ^  and  again  a  few  months  later  for  the  coronation  of 
Charles  V.     Other  visits  are  also  referred  to. 

Hut  though  Correggio  possibly  accompanied  Veronica  to  Bologna, 
and  undoubtedly  saw  some  of  Raphael's  works,  moral  and  historic 
probability  are  alike  set  at  nought  by  this  story,  which  must  be 
relegated  to  the  region  of  romance.  .Such  a  boast  was  entirely  out  of 
keeping  with  Correggio's  modest  and  reticent  character.  If  there  be 
any,  however,  who  want  further  proof  of  the  dubious  nature  of  the 
legend,  be  it  known  to  them  that  it  was  first  related  by  Father  Resta.'-^ 
Much  uncertainty  exists  in  connection  with  the  works  executed  by  the 
painter  for  the  rulers  of  Correggio,  and,  more  especially,  for  Veronica. 
It  appears,  as  we  shall  see  later,  that  one  of  these  was  a  Ifcrodias. 
The  chronicler,  Lucio  Zuccardi,  who  flourished  in  the  first  half  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  says  that  he  decorated  portions  of  the  palace 
outside  the  walls  of  the  city,  in  which  Charles  V.  was  lodged.  The 
statement  was  repeated  and  embellished  by  Tiraboschi,  who  says  that 
Correggio  worked  there  in  his  youth  by  command  of  Veronica.^ 
Pungileoni,  with  more  respect,  perhaps,  for  his  authority,  assigns  the 
work  to  Correggio's  last  years.  The  painter  undoubtedly  decorated 
certain  rooms  in  the  castle,  but  his  work  was  done  in  preparation  for 
the  visit  of  Charles  V.,  which  fixes  its  date  approximately.  He  must 
have  worked  there  shortly  before  the  first  visit,  in  March  1530,  or 
before  the  Emperor's  return  in  1532.'  The  castle,  however,  which 
stood  to  the  east  of  the  city,  was  demolished  for  strategic  reasons  in 
155;,  during  the  war  with  Paul  IV.''  Every  trace  therefore  of  such 
internal  evidence  as  might  have  guided  modern  criticism  to  a  decision 
of  the  question  had  perished  many  years  before  Zuccardi  made  the 
statement  so  confidently  relied  on  by  later  writers. 

It  is  further  recorded  that  Correggio  worked  in  Francesca  ol 
Brandenburg's  palace,  portions  of  which  still  exist  in  the  city.  We  are 
of  opinion,    however,   that  if   he   had   really    painted  any  frescoes    of 


'  Veronica  Gambara,  Rime  c  kl/t'iv,  p.  166. 

■'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  252  ;  l^ungileoiii,  i.  p.  6  i  ;  Dottari,  A\iuv//ii  di  Icffciv,  vi.  p.  381,  etc. 

3  Op.  cit.  ii.  p.  123,  and  vi.  pp.  252-3.  ^   Op.  cit.  i.  p.  245  ;  ii.  [).  232. 

*  Tiraboschi,  ii.  p.  123;  Magnanini,  p.  21. 


86  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

importance  there,  they  would  have  been  preserved,  or  at  least  some 
definite  mention  of  them  w^oiild  be  found  in  the  pages  of  contemporary- 
historians.  Certain  fragments  of  decoration  are  still  decipherable  in 
the  ruined  palace,  but  there  are  no  grounds  vi^hatever  for  their  ascrip- 
tion to  Correggio.  The  frescoes  in  the  upper  room,  already  described, 
were  painted  in  1508,  and  are  in  all  probability  the  work  of  Cesare  di 
Reggio.  Those  in  a  room  on  the  ground-floor,  immediately  to  the  left 
of  the  entrance,  are  perhaps  later.  They  have  been  barbarously  re- 
painted in  oils,  and  completely  destroyed.  But  there  is  nothing  to 
suggest  that  they  were  ever  of  such  merit  as  to  warrant  their  attribu- 
tion to  the  master.  Though  of  no  great  artistic  importance,  they  must 
originally  have  been  gay  and  effective  as  decorations.  A  frieze  of  Amorini 
at  play  runs  round  the  vault,  the  centre  of  which,  enclosed  by  the  usual 
balustrade,  simulates  the  blue  of  a  southern  sky,  producing  a  pleasant 
sense  of  space  and  atmosphere.  Pungileoni  mentions  other  paintings 
which  have  now  perished,  dismissing  them,  however,  as  of  little 
interest.  Our  knowledge  of  works  possibly  executed  by  Correggio 
for  the  ruling  house  is  bounded  by  a  few  vague  references  and  still 
vaguer  conjectures.  We  may  therefore  conclude  that  if  he  received 
any  such  commission  from  his  patrons,  it  was  of  slight  importance. 

The  court  with  which  the  Correggeschi  kept  up  the  most  cordial 
relations  was  that  of  the  Gonzaghi.  Isabella  d'Este  was  the  lady  to 
whom  Veronica  paid  the  most  assiduous  attention.  The  earliest  ot 
Veronica's  e.xtant  letters  is  a  note  to  Isabella,  dated  February  i,  1503, 
when  the  writer  was  barely  eighteen.  It  betrays  evident  emotion,  a 
natural  timidity  in  addressing  the  great  lady  who  had  honoured  her 
with  a  letter.  She  modestly  confesses  herself  "  unequal  to  the  lofty 
undertaking"  of  thanking  Isabella  adequately  for  her  goodness,  but 
gratefully  acknowledges  her  favour,  and  subscribes  herself  her  "  servant 
eternally."  ^ 

In  time,  as  the  intimacy  between  these  two  kindred  spirits  increased, 
the  formality  of  the  early  letters  is  considerably  abated,  and  Veronica's 
tone  becomes  less  submissive.  Renier  says  :  "  The  correspondence 
between  the  two  women  must  have  been  frequent,  and  there  is  reason 

1   Renier,  op.  cit.  p.  442. 


ISABELLA    TVF.STE  87 

to  believe  that  the  few  letters  which  have  come  clown  to  us  are  very 
insufficient  samples  of  the  whole." 

When  Isabella,  idolised  and  acclaimed  from  her  infancy,  entered 
Mantua,  a  bride  of  sixteen,  she  was  received  with  the  utmost 
enthusiasm,  not  only  by  the  citizens,  but  by  some  seventeen  thousand 
strangers  who  had  assembled  to  greet  her.''  She  was  accounted  the 
most  cultured  maiden  in  Italy,  and  "the  most  perfect  specimen  of  that 
exquisite  blossom,  the  woman  of  the  Renaissance."-  When  she 
visited  Ferrara  to  assist  at  the  wedding  of  Lucrczia  Borgia,  she 
outshone  all  the  assembled  princesses.  A  devotee  of  the  arts,  she 
engaged  in  long  and  tedious  litigation  with  an  antiquary  who  sold  her 
two  counterfeit  statues  as  antiques,  writing  meanwhile  letter  after 
letter  containing  orders  for  pictures  by  the  great  masters,  pottery  from 
Casteldurante,  jewels,  etc.  She  lived  surrounded  by  an  army  of 
painters,  sculptors,  architects,  makers  of  musical  instruments,  and 
musicians,  among  the  latter  the  famous  Jacopo  da  San  Secondo,  who 
is  said  to  have  been  Raphael's  model  for  the  Apollo  in  his  Parnassus. 
When  Duke  Valentino  presented  Michelangelo's  Cupid  to  her,  she 
immediately  procured  a  Greek  Cupid  to  place  beside  it  for  comparison. 
She  corresponded  with  Giovanni  Bellini,  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  and 
Buonarroti  himself,  and  it  was  at  her  suggestion  that  Baldassarre 
Castiglione  brought  Giulio  Romano  to  Mantua. 

A  glamour  of  art  and  poetry  surrounded  her  stately  figure.  With 
what  emotion  must  artists  and  men  of  letters  have  entered  her 
presence-chamber!  How  into.xicating  must  have  been  their  homage! 
We  see  in  fancy  the  little  rooms,  with  their  gilded  and  coffered 
ceilings,  rich  with  traceries  delicate  as  that  of  some  masterpiece  of 
the  goldsmith's  art,  interspersed  with  shields  bearing  musical  notes 
and  the  device  Nee  spc,  nee  mctu.  Above,  the  walls  are  covered  with 
tapestries  and  pictures  by  famous  masters,  the  subjects  and  dimensions 
suggested  by  herself;  below,  they  are  panelled  with  intarsias,  either  in 
perspective,  or  representing  groups  of  musical  instruments.     On  every 

1  A.  Luzio  and  R.  Rcnier,  M,i/ifova  c  Urbiuo.  hahclla  irEs/f  e  Elisahetta  Gonzaga. 
Turin,  1893. 

-  Pio  Raina,  E Orlando  Iiinamorato  del  Boiardo,  in  La  rl/a  italiana  ml  Rinascimcnto, 
p.  325.      Milan,  1S93. 


88  ANTONIO    DA    rORREGGIO 

side,  tables  and  stools  are  loaded  with  bronzes,  medals,  marbles, 
pottery,  brocades,  books,  viols,  lutes,  and,  among  them  all,  sheaves 
of  freshly  gathered  flowers.  Etiquettes  were  waived  in  favour  of  those 
who  could  discourse  to  her  of  art  or  science,  or  show  her  some 
beautiful  thing.  Her  eye  was  athirst  for  loveliness,  her  brain  greedy 
of  knowledge  !  The  artists  and  learned  men  who  surrounded  her, 
and  felt  the  magic  of  her  fascination,  hailed  her  as  one  of  the  Pierides, 


sent  by  Jove  for  the  consummation  of  the  new  culture.  In  her  hours 
of  solitude  she  read  the  ancient  poets  and  historians,  and  the  books  her 
admirers  had  sent  her  and  she  herself  had  collected.  Or  she  would 
pass  her  treasures  in  review,  or  write  commissioning  her  friends  to 
find  her  others  ;  or  seek  rela.xation  at  her  harpsichord,  while  eye 
and  mind  found  rest  in  contemplation  of  the  wide  and  tranquil 
landscape  beyond  her  palace  walls. 


A    CORRICGGIO 


89 


The  social  relations  bctwecni  the  courts  of  Mantua  and  Correggio 
soon  ripened  into  friendship.  Borso  da  Correggio  was  the  mediator  in 
a  dispute  between  Isabella  and  her  husband,  and  the  former  acted  as 
sponsor  to  Veronica's  first-born  son. 

A  frequent  visitor  at  the.  court  of  Mantua  from  1508  onwards  was 
the  gallant  Nicolo  da  Correggio,  a  prince  "who  was  an  accomplished 


I 

mmm 

'     1 

/  : 

\A^ 

^\'j'mM:Mch''^m^  ^' 

W^w^ 

umm:wmm 

^:::^ 

'^^^MQ-Jmli  '^^^m^mi 

-*r,._    ^ 

fl^^^J-^- 

. ,/ 

^^HRnfc'       'iS 

cavalier  and  gentleman,  a  subtle  diplomatist,  a  lover  of  the  arts,  and 
addicted  to  a  lordly  magnificence  and  luxury.  Ladies  loved  him  ior 
the  easy  grace  of  his  manners,  princes  for  his  intelligence,  dexterity, 
and  valour,  the  public  for  his  munificence,  and  the  martial  displays 
with  which  he  indulged  them."  ^      He  chose  songs  for  Isabella  and  sent 

1  A.  I.n/.io  and   R.   Renier,    A'm'/h  da   Conrggw  {Giornak  storico  delhx   leltcratiira 
italiaiia,  vols.  xxi.  and  xxii.). 

N 


90  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

her  his  own,  made  suggestions  for  eclogues,  triolets,  sonnets,  and 
translations  from  Virgil,  furnished  her  with  mottoes  for  medals,  and 
lent  her  tragedies.  He  himself  played  a  lyre  sent  him  by  the  famous 
musician,  Atalante  Migliorotti. 

This  deep  and  intense  enjoyment  of  life  in  its  cesthetic  mani- 
festations he  had  drawn  from  the  same  source  as  Isabella.  It  had 
been  instilled  into  him  at  the  court  of  Ferrara,  in  familiar  intercourse 
with  Decembrio,  Teofilo  Calcagnini,  Boiardo,  and  other  philosophers 
and  poets.  Hence  his  entire  sympathy  with  all  the  ideals  and  aspira- 
tions of  his  kinswoman.  His  mother  was  a  member  of  the  house  of 
Este,  and  shared  his  passion  for  luxury  and  gallantry.  Renowned  for 
her  grace,  her  magnificence,  her  gaiety  and  her  social  talents,  she  was 
called  the  Queen  of  Festivals.  A  distich  of  the  period  commemorates 
her  gifts  in  these  magniloquent  lines  : 

"  Chi  vuol  vedere  il  paradiso  in  terra 
Vegga  Donna  Beatrice  in  una  festa." 
(He  who  would  see  paradise  on  earth 
Should  see  Donna  Beatrice  at  a  festival.) 

One  of  Nicolo's  most  remarkable  compeers  at  the  court  of  the 
Gonzaghi  was  a  monk  from  Correggio,  whose  speciality  was  a  know- 
ledge of  literary  and  artistic  matters.  He  kept  Isabella  informed  of 
all  that  came  under  his  notice  in  this  connection,  spicing  his  reports, 
it  was  said,  with  a  good  deal  of  gossip. 

Nicolo  and  this  priest  were  succeeded  in  the  friendship  of  the 
Gonzaghi  by  Brachino  Croce,  also  of  Correggio,  renowned  for  his 
administrative  talents  and  his  eloquence.^ 

The  intercourse  between  Mantua  and  Correggio  from  frequent 
soon  became  constant  and  affectionate,  facilities  for  communication 
being  afforded  by  the  excellent  road  uniting  them.  It  is  natural  to 
suppose  that  Veronica  gratified  Isabella's  taste  for  artistic  novelties  b)- 
tales  of  the  youthful  Allegri  and  the  precocious  promise  of  his  first 
essays.  Veronica,  as  we  learn  from  Rinaldo  Corso,  was  passionately 
fond  of  children.  She  was  greatly  interested  in  art,  and  the  intimate 
friend  of  the  Marchesa  of  Mantua,  to  whom  she  frequently  sent  her 
'   D'Arco,  (•'/>.  (it.  ii.  p.  97. 


THE   TWO    PRINCESSES  91 

own  children,  and  at  whose  court  several  natives  of  Correggio  had 
sojourned,  or  were  actually  settled.  What  more  probable  than  that 
Allegri's  first  introduction  to  Mantua  should  have  been  effected  through 
one  of  these  various  channels  of  communication  ? 

His  intimacy  with  the  ruling  family  of  his  native  city  is  fully 
attested  by  documents.  Correggese  historians  have  preserved  an  old 
tradition,  which  affirms  that  the  princes  sought  refuge  in  Mantua 
during  the  outbreak  of  plague  in  their  own  city,  taking  with  them  the 
youthful  artist.  Writing  to  Isabella  about  Correggio  and  one  of  his 
pictures,  Veronica  makes  use  of  a  very  significant  pronoun,  which 
leaves  no  doubt  as  to  the  affectionate  interest  felt  by  the  two  ladies  in 
the  painter.     She  calls  Correggio  "  our  Antonio." 

At  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  Italian  style  was  as  yet 
free  from  the  hyperbolic  sentimentality  afterwards  introduced  from 
Spain.  Even  among  persons  of  the  same  family,  especially  those  of 
noble  birth,  the  use  of  endearing  adjectives  and  possessive  pronouns 
was  by  no  means  frequent.  It  was  accounted  a  graceful  and  cordial 
act  of  recognition  on  the  part  of  Isabella  herself  to  speak  of  Eleonora 
of  Correggio  as  "  our  Eleonora." 

When  therefore  Veronica  and  Isabella  spoke  of  Correggio  as  "  our 
Antonio,"  they  claimed  a  certain  share  in  his  glory  which  is  undoubtedly 
theirs  by  right.  Women  have  a  keener  and  more  delicate  perception 
of  genius  than  men.  They  have  the  same  skill  in  developing  the 
nascent  soul  as  in  handling  the  infant  body.  Those  whose  light  touch 
alleviates  the  wounds  of  the  tortured  body  can  best  pour  the  balm 
of  healing  upon  moral  suffering.  Sister  Celeste's  figure  is  the  most 
beautiful  in  Galileo's  history.  The  more  sheltered  life  of  women  pre- 
serves their  capacity  for  belief.  In  the  heat  of  the  daily  struggle 
men  become  sceptical  and  intolerant.  They  are  impatient  of  persons 
and  things  they  consider  unimportant,  though  these  may  sometimes 
contain  the  germs  of  a  glorious  future.  Who  shall  say  that  the 
radiant  grace  of  "  our  Antonio's  "  works  did  not  owe  its  first  impulse 
to  the  smiles  and  encouragement  with  which  two  noble  and  cultured 
women  rewarded  his  early  efforts  .'' 


CHAPTER   VI 

CORREGGIO'S    EARLY    WORKS 

IHL     lk\NCIsC\M     ALIAK  riLCI       \1     DkLsDEN — JUVENILE    PICTUKES     liY    CORREGGIO 
Al    MILAN,    I  \\  I  \,    MULU  \  \,    H(1KE\CL,    MUNICH,    bIGMAKINGEX,    AND    LONDON. 

THE  first  of  Correggio's 
\vorks  mentioned  in  exist- 
ing records  is  the  so-called 
Madonna  of  San  Francesco.  In 
his  will,  dated  July  4,  15 14,  a 
certain  Quirino  Zuccardi  left  a 
house  to  the  Franciscan  monas- 
tery at  Correggio.  This  legacy 
he  directed  should  be  used  to 
cover  the  cost  of  a  j)icture  for 
the  high  altar  of  the  church. 
Zuccardi's  heir,  Nicola  Selli  of 
I'arma,  a  citizen  of  Correggio, 
elected  to  keep  the  house.  He 
"'"  """'"''" '■""^'■"1' '^■'"  I'-'^i'j  ■"  i'-'""a)  offered  to  compound  for  its  pos- 
session with    a   sum  of   ninety-five  ducats,   sixty-four  soldi,  to  be  paid 


THE  MADONNA  Ol'  SAN  FRANCESCO  o;, 

to  Girolamo  Catanei,  the  Franciscan  bursar  and  procurator,  the  money 
to  l)e  spent  on  the  proposed  picture.  The  offer  was  readily  accepted 
by  the  reverend  bursar,  who  duly  fixed  a  limit  of  time  for  the  setde- 
ment.  About  six  weeks  later  (August  30),  Catanei,  Antonio  Zuccardi, 
Tommaso  Affarosi,  syndic  of  the  monastery,  and  a  notary,  presented 
themselves  at  the  house  of  Correggio,  then  a  youth  of  barely  twenty 
years  old,  and  commissioned  him  to  paint  the  altar-piece.  The  agree- 
ment drawn  up  on  this  occasion  gives  a  minor  detail  of  some  interest. 
The  preliminaries  were  discussed  and  the  contract  made  in  the 
painter's  modest  bed-room  on  the  ground-floor.  Why,  it  may  be 
asked,  was  not  some  more  suitable  place  chosen — the  monastery  itself, 
the  notary's  house,  the  palace  of  the  city  ?  The  answer  is  obvious. 
We  are  convinced  that  Allegri  had  already  painted  the  67.  Martha 
(of  which  we  shall  have  more  to  say  presently)  for  the  Church  of  the 
Misericordia,  and  that  this  picture  had,  in  fact,  determined  the  choice 
of  an  artist  for  the  new  commission.  But  in  a  matter  of  such  im- 
portance, the  syndics  naturally  wished  to  satisfy  themselves  in  person 
concerning  the  young  man's  proposed  treatment  of  the  theme.  It 
was  therefore  necessary  that  he  should  show  them  his  sketches  and 
drawings.  We  can  picture  the  whole  scene  :  the  worthy  commis- 
sioners seated,  absorbed  in  their  scrutiny  of  the  smiling  Saints  and 
Madonnas  ;  Correggio  arranging  them  in  the  most  favourable  light, 
and  noting  the  impression  produced  in  the  attentive  faces  of  his 
critics ;  lastly,  Pellegrino  Allegri  in  the  back-ground,  delighted  at 
the  fresh  honour  bestowed  on  his  youthful  son.  The  deed,  in  fact, 
declares  him  to  have  been  present,  acting  on  behalf  of  Antonio,  a 
minor.  There  is  no  mention,  however,  of  another  person,  Bernardina 
Aromani,  the  painter's  mother,  who  was  probably  close  at  hand, 
peering  through  the  open  door,   her  heart  swelling  with  emotion. 

That  the  syndics  duly  admired  his  works  is  evident  from  the  sum 
they  agreed  to  pay — a  hundred  gold  ducats.  This  was  a  very  con- 
siderable price  to  offer  even  to  a  mature  artist,  much  more  so  to  a 
youth  whose  career  was  scarcely  begun.  The  notary  formally  con- 
cluded the  bargain.  Fifty  ducats  were  paid  down  on  account,  the 
rest  to  be  handed  over  on  completion  of  the  work.     Antonio's  patrons 


94  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

were  no  less  exact  in  the  matter  of  materials.  The  panel  on  which 
the  picture  was  to  be  painted  was  contracted  for  in  another  deed  of 
October  4,  whereby  Master  Pietro  Landini  agreed  to  deliver  it  within 
the  month. 

Meanwhile  Correggio  was  to  prepare  his  cartoon,  and  be  ready  to 
begin  the  picture  early  in  November. 

On  March  24,  15 15,  two  payments  are  recorded,  one  to  Luca 
Ferrari  for  certain  irons  for  the  frame,  and  one,  of  ten  ducats,  to  the 
painter  for  a  miara  of  gold  to  be  placed  on  the  altar-piece. 

The  picture  was  almost  finished.  A  few  more  days  of  toil,  and 
the  task  would  be  at  an  end.  On  April  4,  Master  Antonio  Allegri 
received  the  "  last  payment,"  in  the  presence  of  Messer  Tommaso 
Farosi,  syndic  of  the  monastery,  Messer  Gian  Ludovico  Montesino, 
the  Padre  Predicatore  [Prcac/tiiig  Father),  Friar  Giacomo  da  Ceva, 
and  the  Vicar  of  the  monastery. 

This  entry  is  followed  by  various  others  for  expenses  connected 
with  the  altar-piece,  as  :  whitewashing  the  chapel,  constructing  a 
scaffolding,  providing  a  curtain  for  the  picture.  Then  come  certain 
payments  made  to  Landini,  who  had  prepared  the  panel,  and  to  the 
painter  himself  for  "  blue  on  the  frame,"  no  doubt  the  ground-work  of 
the  gold  ornaments.^ 

It  is  therefore  certain  that  this  extraordinary  work  was  completed 
by  the  young  man  in  five  months  ! 

It  was  carefully  preserved  in  its  original  place  until  1638. 
Towards  the  end  of  March  in  this  year,  the  French  painter,  Jean 
Boulanger,  arrived  at  Correggio,  having  entered  the  service  of  the 
Duke  of  Modena  a  few  days  before.  He  installed  himself  on  a 
scaffold  behind  the  high  altar,  made  a  hasty  copy  of  the  picture,  and 
departed.  On  April  1 2  it  was  rumoured  in  Correggio  that  the 
original  had  been  carried  off,  and  replaced  by  Boulanger's  copy.  The 
whole  country-side  was  in  an  uproar.  The  church  was  besieged  by 
an  angry  crowd,  calling  down  vengeance  on  the  thieves.  The  great 
bell  of  the  commune  was  rung,  and  the  Anziani,    followed  by  a  throng 

'  'riraboschi,  vi.  pp.  253  and  258  ;  I'ungilconi,  ii.  j)]!.  65-69.  Tiraboschi  erroneously 
supposes  this  i)icture  to  liave  been  painted  for  the  Minorites  of  Carpi. 


ARDUCTIOX   OF   THE    TRANCISrAN    ALTAR-PIErE  95 

of  persons  of  all  classes,  asscmbletl  in  the  ante-room  of  Signer 
Annibalc  INTolza,  the  Duke  of  Modena's  representative  at  Correggio. 
None  ot  those  present,  with  the  one  exception  of  Molza,  had  any 
suspicion  as  to  the  real  author  of  ihc.  theft,  as  they  roundly  called  it. 
The  leaders  stated  their  case  as  follows,  in  the  presence  of  all  :  "  The 
robbery  was  probably  carried  out  by  the  painter  aforesaid,  with  the 
consent  or  connivance  of  some  of  the  fathers  of  the  monastery.  And 
therefore  the  people,  discovering  the  theft  of  a  picture  so  greatly 
prized  and  valued  by  the  whole  community  at  all  times,  and  recog- 
nising its  loss  as  a  special  grief  to  the  Council  General,  brings  the 
matter  before  the  illustrious  Governor  of  the  city,  begging  for  his  help 
and  favour  in  inducing  his  Serene  Highness,  the  gracious  and  bene- 
ficent father  of  his  people,  to  exert  his  authority  for  the  discovery 
of  the  delinquent."  The  poor  Correggese,  had,  as  a  fact,  cast  them- 
selves bodily  into  the  mouth  of  the  wolf!  Boulanger  and  the  monks 
had  but  obeyed  the  mandate  of  the  Duke,  who  must  have  laughed  in 
his  sleeve  at  these  humble  appeals  for  help !  Molza  wrote  to  the 
Duke,  setting  forth  what  had  happened,  and  concluded  his  promised 
mediation  by  remarking  that  he  could  not  understand  why  the  people 
were  making  such  a  commotion  !'  It  was  not  long  before  the  picture 
appeared  In  the  Estense  collection,  where  it  remained  for  over  a 
century,  until  the  sale  made  by  Francesco  III.  to  Augustus  III., 
King  of  Poland,  and  Elector  of  Saxony.  In  the  summer  of  1746  it  was 
taken  to  Dresden,  with  other  works  by  Correggio,  of  which  we  shall 
speak  in  their  place.  "  Duke  Francesco  was  overwhelmed  with  debts, 
partly  a  heritage  from  RInaldo,  who  had  been  greatly  embarrassed  by 
the  acquisition  of  Mirandola  and  Concordia,  and  whose  resources  had 
been  drained  by  incessant  wars,  partly  the  result  of  his  own  malad- 
ministration, and  the  expenses  of  fresh  campaigns.  But  the  sale  of 
the  gems  of  his  gallery,  which,  while  it  robbed  Modena  and  Italy  of 
their  artistic  patrimony,  remedied  no  crying  evil,  and  healed  no  single 
wound  in  the  body  politic,  was  a  disgraceful  action.  Francesco  had 
little  claim  indeed  to  the  popularity  he  seems  to  have  enjoyed,  to  judge 
by  the  bronze  equestrian  statue  erected  in  his  honour  by  the  citizens 
'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  pp.  :!53-54  ;  Magnanini,  p.  23. 


96 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


during  his  lifetime.  Yet  there  were  some,  perhaps,  who  remembered 
the  Dresden  sale,  when  the  mutilated  statue  rolled  along  the  streets 
of  Modena  at  the  time  of  the  French  Revolution."' 

Let  us  return  to  the  picture. 

The  figures  are  assembled  under  a  wide  open  loggia,  on  either 
side  of  which  are  two  columns  with  Ionic  capitals  and  a  pilaster. 
The  lofty  throne  on  which  the  Virgin  is  seated  rises  in  the  midst 
against     a    background    of    sunny     landscape     and    distant     hills     in 


delicate  perspective.  The  base  of  the  throne  is  decorated  in 
chiaroscuro  on  a  red  ground  with  the  episodes  of  the  Fall,  Adam 
and  Eve  appearing  in  three  distinct  groups  among  the  tree- 
trunks  of  the  earthly  Paradise.  From  this  base  rises  a  massive 
circular  column,  surmounted  by  a  marble  dado,  adorned  with 
narrow  fillets  and  a  fine  tracery.  The  greater  part  of  the  surface 
of  the  column  is  occupied  by  an  oval  medallion,  surrounded  by  a 
garland,  in  the  centre  of  which  is  a  seated  figure  of  Moses  holding 
the  tables  of  the  law.  The  medallion  is  supported  by  two  cherubs, 
whose  uplifted  left  arms  rest  against  the  dado,  a  device  by  which  they 
1   .\.  \'L'nturi,  La  R.  Gallcria  estciise  in  Modena,  p.  320.     Modena,  18S3. 


Till':    MADONNA   OF   SAN    FRANCESCO  97 

are  welded  into  ihc  architectural  scheme  in  the  shape  of  living 
caryatids.  Little  is  seen  of  the  upper  part  of  the  throne  save 
the  double  shafts  of  the  supporting  lateral  columns,  the  rest  being 
hidden  by  the  figure  of  the  Virgin  and  her  flowing  draperies.  Her 
knees  are  slightly  inclined  to  the  left,  her  feet  rest  on  a  stool,  and  her 
face  and  the  upper  part  of  her  figure  are  turned  to  the  right.  With 
a  gentle  smile  she  extends  one  hand,  motioning  St.  Francis  of  Assisi 
to  kneel  and  adore  the  Infant  whom  she  holds  on  her  lap  with  the 
other.  The  Saint  stoops  to  obey  her,  slightly  raising  his  robe, 
but  keeping  his  eyes  rapturously  fixed  on  the  Child,  to  whom  he 
raises  his  face  with  a  look  of  adoring  tenderness,  laying  his  left  hand 
on  his  breast,  where  an  opening  in  the  tunic  reveals  the  wound  in  his 
side.  In  the  penumbra  beyond,  St.  Anthony  of  Padua,  with  book 
and  lily,  looks  out  at  the  spectator.  On  the  opposite  side,  close 
to  the  throne,  on  the  base  of  which  she  leans  her  right  arm,  St. 
Catherine  gazes  in  holy  ecstasy  at  the  Child.  With  her  right  hand 
she  clasps  the  hilt  of  a  great  sword,  and  the  palm  of  martyrdom  ; 
with  the  left  she  draws  up  her  robe,  displaying  her  foot,  which  rests 
on  the  nave  of  the  wheel.  Beside  it  lies  her  crown.  In  the 
foreground  stands  St.  John  the  Baptist,  a  lofty  and  commanding 
figure,  holding  in  one  hand  the  long  reed  cross,  and  the  folds  of  the 
mantle  which  falls  over  his  goatskin  tunic,  and  with  the  other  directing 
the  gaze  of  the  spectator  to  the  Lamb  of  God.  Ten  cherub  heads 
appear  in  a  circle  among  the  radiant  clouds  above,  and  two  angels, 
joining  hands,  hover  under  the  higgta  on  a  level  with  the  capitals. 
Only  one  of  these  figures  is  winged  ;  his  face  is  turned  almost  full 
on  the  spectator,  while  his  companion,  flying  in  the  opposite  direction, 
is  seen  in  profile.  On  the  circle  of  St.  Catherine's  wheel  is  the 
inscription  :   "  Antonivs  de  Alegris.   P." 

Beautiful  as  the  picture  is  intrinsically,  it  appears  almost  miraculous 
when  we  consider  it  as  the  work  of  a  youth  of  twenty.  It  has  defects, 
of  course,  and  reveals  the  impressions  gleaned  in  various  studios  here 
and  there.  But  the  defects  are  so  unimportant,  the  impressions  from 
without  so  neutralised  by  strong  personal  elements,  that  the  work  fully 
merits  its  great  reputation. 

As    Meyer   very  justly   remarks  :     "  To   appreciate    the    wonderful 

o 


98  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

originality  of  Correggio  at  this  early  age,  we  need  but  compare  his 
picture  with  the  Man-iage  of  the  \'irgin  (now  in  the  Brera  at  Milan) 
painted  by  Raphael  when  he  was  somewhat  older.  Here  the  influence 
of  Perugino  almost  effaces  the  painter's  own  individuality."  ^ 

In  Correggio's  picture,  reminiscences  of  Mantegna  are  clearly 
apparent  in  the  figure  of  the  Virgin,  and  the  influence  of  Costa 
shows  itself  in  the  chiaroscuro  medallion  on  the  throne.  Beyond 
this,  we  can  find  no  indubitable  traces  of  alien  inspiration.  Mengs  - 
indeed,  and  Meyer  ^  thought  they  discerned  the  Leonardesque  type, 
not  only  in  the  St.  John  (where,  perhaps,  they  were  right),  but  also 
in  the  Virgin,  whose  characteristics  are  derived  from  a  very  different 
source.  The  utmost  diversity  of  opinions  has  been  based  on  the 
sentiment  of  the  various  heads.  Criticism,  refining  on  the  subtleties 
proper  to  a  metaphysical  treatise,  has  discovered  in  these,  echoes  of 
the  Umbrian  School,  and  of  Francia,  transmitted  perhaps  by  Ferrari- 
Bianchi.*  One  critic  declares  the  head  of  St.  Catherine  to  be  derived 
from  Francia  ;  ^  another  sees  in  it  the  influence  of  Perugino.'^ 

There  is  certainly  a  Peruginesque  air  about  the  head  ;  but  this  hardly 
justifies  the  writer  in  sending  Correggio  to  study  at  Bologna  (a 
hypothesis  we  have  already  dismissed)  in  order  to  account  for  his 
supposed  familiarity  with  a  famous  picture  by  the  Umbrian  master,  still  in 
that  city.  It  is  well  known  that  after  long  importunity,  Isabella  d'Este 
obtained  certain  pictures  by  Perugino,  which  were  brought  to  Mantua 
during  the  first  years  of  the  sixteenth  century.''  The  most  notable 
defect  of  the  picture  is  perhaps  the  exaggerated  length  of  ihe  Virgin's 
body  from  waist  to  feet.  Our  great  admiration  for  the  work  not- 
withstanding, we  must  admit  that  standing  upright,  the  figure  would  be 
gigantic.  Some  of  the  foreshortenings  too,  are  hard  and  awkward. 
But  we  may  point  out  innumerable  beauties  by  way  of  compensation. 
The  simplicity  of  the  composition,  which  is  of  the  traditional  fifteenth 
century  character,  is  enriched  by  the  great  variety  of  attitudes,  at  once 
reticent  and  animated.      This  variety  is  much  enhanced  by  the  supple 

1   Correggio,  p.  98.  -  II.,  p.  161.  =  Correggio,  p.  94. 

•*  Op.  cit.,  loc.  cit.  ^  Morelli,  Le  opere  dei  maestri  italiatii,  p.  122. 

"  Alberto  Rondani,  Come  visse  il  Correggio,  in  the  Nuova  Antologia,  Hi.  \\  45  (Rome, 
1894),  and  //  Correggio,  a  .study  published  at  intervals  in  the  Gazzetta  di  Parma,  1S90. 
"'    Giornale  di  erudizione  artistica,  ii.  pp.  144  and  159.     Perugia,  1873. 


THE    MADONNA    OF   SAN    FRANCESrO  99 

and  expressive  play  of  tlie  hands  and  feet.  The  chiaroscuro  and 
colour,  though  of  course  far  behind  those  of  his  later  works,  is  already 
remarkable  for  its  agreeable  vigour  and  transparency.  The  air 
circulates  freely  about  the  finely  modelled  figures.  The  light  is 
diffused  above  them  in  a  masterly  fashion,  and  breaks  gaily  over 
the  wide  and  simple  landscape,  where  again  Meyer  recognised  a 
Leonardesque  breadth  of  treatment,  though  he  might  have  sought 
his  parallel  more  opportunely  among  Ferrarese  examples.  But  if 
these  excellences,  and  the  scrupulous  accuracy  of  the  technique  are 
sufficiently  remarkable  in  the  work  of  an  artist  of  twenty,  wc  must 
give  a  yet  greater  meed  of  admiration  to  the  expression  and  sentiment 
of  the  heads,  in  the  rendering  of  which  the  young  master  showed 
himself  equal,   if  not   superior,    to   the  greatest   artists  of  his   day. 

We  may  now  inquire  what  other  works  exist,  painted  by  Correggio 
before,  or  at  about  the  same  date  as  his  first  great  altar-piece. 

To  determine  this  question,  it  was  of  course  necessary  to  make  a 
careful  study  of  this,  his  first  authenticated  work.  Such  a  study  was 
undertaken  of  late  years,  by  Giovanni  Morelli,  who  made  several 
additions  to  the  scanty  list  of  Correggio's  juvenile  works.  But  we 
cannot  follow  him  in  assigning  some  of  these  to  so  early  a  date  as 
151 1.  The  utmost  we  are  inclined  to  concede  is  that  they  may  have 
been  painted  in  the  following  year,  or,  more  probably,  in  15 13,  either 
while  he  was  in  Mantua,  or  immediately  after  his  return  from  that 
city.  In  each  of  the  little  pictures  in  question,  some  Mantegnesque 
motive  appears  among  the  Emilian  elements. 

My  friend.  Dr.  Gustavo  Frizzoni,  of  Milan,  owns  a  small  and 
much  injured  panel,  formerly  in  the  Costabili  Gallery  at  Ferrara, 
representing  the  Mystic  Marriage  of  St.  Catherine.  The  enthroned 
Madonna  bends  slightly  to  the  right,  holding  on  her  lap  the  Infant 
Jesus,  who,  taking  the  Saint's  fingers  in  one  little  hand,  offers  the  ring 
with  the  other.  St.  Catherine  kneels  modestly  before  them ;  the 
crown,  the  sword,  and  the  broken  wheel  lie  on  the  steps  of  the  throne. 
On  one  side  of  the  group  stands  St.  Francis,  his  eyes  fixed  on  the 
Infant  Bridegroom,  on  the  other  St.  Dominic,  holding  a  book  and  a 
lily.  St.  Anne,  seated  behind  the  Virgin,  extends  her  right  hand  in 
benediction  over  the  head  of  St.   Catherine.      Behind   the   group  is   a 


loo  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

sculptured  recess.  "  The  modelling  of  the  hands,"  says  Morelli,  "  is 
still  that  of  Lorenzo  Costa,  the  vivacity  of  the  colour  recalls  Mazzo- 
lino,  but  in  the  expression  and  attitude  of  St.  Francis  the  future 
Correggio  stands  revealed.  In  shape  and  ornament  the  throne  is  very 
like  that  in  the  Dresden  picture."  ^  This  resemblance,  however,  is 
limited   to  the  footstool   below,    the  central   ornament  of  which   is  an 


oval  medallion  of  Ahrahaiifs  Sacrifice.  Morelli  does  not  notice  that 
on  the  back  of  the  throne,  above,  there  is  a  roundel,  as  in  Mantegna's 
S.  Maria  della  Vittoria  ;  and  that  the   niche  behind   is   wreathed  with 


'  Lc  op, 
Painters,    i. 

Costalnii,  part  iii.  p.  60.     Ferrara,  1841)  attributes  this  picture  to  Fra  Bartolommeo,  and 
says  that  other  persons  had  ascribed  it  to  Raphael.      He  adds,  however,  "T.  Geyser, 


dt'i  maestri  ita/uuii,   y.  123.       .See   also    Morclli's    two    volumes,    Italian 
255,    and    ii.  p.   148.      Caniillo    Laderchi    {Descrizione   dclla    Quadreria 


In  the  Uffui  Gallery, 


I'ART.V    PTCTURES    BY   CORREGGIO  loi 

one  of  the  garlands  of  fruit  and  flowers  so  often  introduced  by  the 
Vicenzan  master.  The  long,  scanty  folds  of  St.  Catherine's  robe  are 
also  very  Mantegnesque  in  treatment. 

In  the  Uffizi^  thcr(>  is  another  small  picture  by  Correggio, 
attributed  to  Titian  in  the  old  catalogues,  but  declared  by  several 
writers  to  be  a  Ferrarrse  work.  Morelli  restored  it  to  its  rightful 
author.  Its  value  is  much  enhanced  by  its  unusually  fine  state  of 
preservation. 

The  Virgin,  enthroned  in  a  mass  of  snowy  clouds,  supports  the 
Child  upon  her  lap.  Both  are  turned  to  the  left,  entranced  by  the 
music  of  a  youthful  winged  angel,  who  plays  the  viol  beside  them. 
Another  angel  behind  them  sings  to  the  accompaniment  of  a  lyre. 
Around  the  shining  aureole  above  is  a  cluster  of  rosy  cherub  heads, 
as  in  the  San  Francesco  altar-piece.  The  colour  is  rich  and  glowing, 
and  especially  brilliant  in  the  Virgin's  crimson  robe,  and  her  blue 
m.antle  with  its  green  lining.  The  sentiment  is  well  sustained.  The 
attention  of  all  is  fixed  on  the  angelic  music  as  if  there  were  but  one 
mind  between  them.  Even  in  these  early  works  we  find  certain 
characteristic  peculiarities  of  the  painter.-  But  the  folds  of  the  veil 
on  the  Virgin's  breast,  and,  as  we  have  already  pointed  out,  the  type 
of  the  Infant  Jesus,  recall  Mantegna. 

A  less  interesting  work  of  this  period  is  the  lYa/hity,  now  in  the 
possession  of  Cav.  Benigno  Crespi  of  Milan.  It  was  in  London  some 
few  years  ago,  and  was  there  described  as  of  the  "  School  of  Dosso."  ^ 
We  have  already  had  occasion  to  mention  it  in  dealing  with  Mantegna's 
influence  upon  Correggio.  We  will  now  examine  it  somewhat  more 
closely.  The  stillness  and  subdued  radiance  of  early  morning  are 
diffused  over  a  landscape  marvellous  in  its  poetry,  its  sentiment,  and 
its  delicate  elaboration.  To  the  right  rise  the  ruins  of  an  antique 
temple — a  marble  column,  with  fragments  of  shattered  walls  and  arches. 
The  rough  beams  of  the  stable  roof  and  the  manger-cradle  rest 
against  them.      Immediately  behind  is  a  hilly  slope,   dotted   with  lofty 


of  Leipzig,  an  artist  and  connoisseur  of  the  first  rank,  maintained  it  to  be  a  work  of 
Correggio,  painted  in  his  early  manner,  certain  rare  examples  of  which  are  to  be  found  in 
other  galleries,  where  they  are  accounted  gems  of  the  greatest  value." 

1  No.  1,002.  -  Morelli,  Italian  Painters,  ii.  p.  149.  '   Op.  cit.  150. 


102  ANTONIO    DA   CORRRCGIO 

trees,  their  scanty  leaves  bending  under  the  morning  breeze,  and 
dappling  the  white-flecked  radiance  of  the  hmiinous  sky  beyond. 
Two  Httle  figures  of  sleeping  shepherds  lie  on  either  side  of  the  first 
and  largest  trunk.  To  the  left  of  the  valley  rises  another  hill,  dusky 
and  wooded,  and  stretching  thence,  a  vast  plain,  like  the  valley 
of  the  Po,  as  seen  from  the  Emilian  hills.  The  figures  are  disposed 
in  a  little  meadow,  gay  with  plants  and  shrubs,  which  suggests  the 
treatment  of  Dosso.  The  Infant  Jesus  slumbers  in  the  midst  on  a 
linen  cloth  spread  over  a  truss  of  straw  ;  the  Virgin  and  St.  Elizabeth 
kneel  on  either  side  in  adoration.  The  Virgin's  arms  are  crossed  upon 
her  breast  ;  St.  Elizabeth,  bending  forward  admiringly,  supports  the 
little  St.  John  on  her  right  knee.  He,  too,  hangs  lovingly  over  the 
sleeping  Child.  St.  Joseph  leans  on  a  cask  behind  the  Virgin,  and  in 
the  middle  distance,  between  her  and  St.  Elizabeth,  a  youthful  angel, 
winged,  and  robed  in  white,  points  out  the  Divine  Babe  to  two 
shepherds,  who,  leaning  over  a  hedge  of  interwoven  boughs,  gaze  in 
astonishment  at  the  Child.  Rays  of  golden  light  fall  on  him  from 
above.  Two  cherubs,  hovering  over  the  head  of  the  Virgin,  stand  out 
in  relief  against  the  dark  mass  of  the  ruins.  Correggio's  characteristic 
sentiment  and  technique  are  displayed  to  greater  perfection  in  this 
than  in  the  other  small  pictures  described,  though  it  has  not  escaped 
injury.  What  may  be  called  studio  reminiscences  are  apparent  in  the 
flying  angels,  in  the  group  of  St.  Elizabeth  and  St.  John  (the  latter 
undoubtedly  inspired  by  Mantegna's  picture  in  the  Church  of  Sant' 
Andrea  at  Mantua),  in  the  broad  Costesque  cast  of  the  draperies  as 
they  fall  about  the  feet.  But  the  painter's  brilliant  personality 
dominates  the  whole.  The  angel  who  addresses  the  shepherds  beams 
with  a  mild  and  heavenly  radiance  ;  in  the  Virgin's  rapt  expression 
we  read  her  holy  joy  at  having  brought  forth  such  a  son.  There  are 
certain  obvious  blemishes,  such  as  a  hardness  in  some  of  the  fore- 
shortenings  (the  right  hand  of  the  angel,  for  instance),  and  trifling 
defects  of  treatment  in  the  draperies  ;  but  the  picture  is  a  little  gem 
as  a  whole.  The  colour-harmony,  brilliant  as  the  plumage  of  a 
humming-bird,  is  Ferrarese,  as  in  Frizzoni's  picture.  The  enamelled 
reds  and  azures  of  the  Virgin's  robes  are  effulgent  as  those  of  Costa 
after    he    had    come    under    the    sway    of    Francia.      St.     Elizabeth's 


the  Palace  at   Signiaringen 


l-ARLY    I'lCrURES    BY    ('ORREGGIO  103 

draperies  are  in  a  lower  key  ;  and  it  is  curious  to  note  the  Mantc- 
o-nesque  influence  proclaiming  itscit',  not  only  in  the  conception,  but 
to   a  certain   extent   in  the   colouring   of  this   figure. 

Judging  by  the  oval  types  of  the  heads,  the  flow  of  the  draperies 
about  the  feet,  and  their  scanty,  perpendicular  folds,  the  sombre  tones 
of  the  landscape  and  of  the  colour  generally,  we  are  inclined  to  think 
the  so-called  Christ  taking  leave  of  /lis  Mother  before  the  Passion,  now 
the  property  of  Mr.  R.  H.  Benson,  a  work  of  about  the  same  date  as 
Signor  Crespi's  picture.  Here  we  agree  with  Morelli  rather  than  with 
Dr.  J.  P.  Richter,  who  supposes  it  to  have  been  painted  about  15  17, 
two  years,  consequently,  after  the  Madonna  of  San  Francesco,  and 
about  two  years  before  the  frescoes  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo,  which 
we  think  quite  impossible.  We  shall  presently  see  what  types  and 
colours  he  affected  at  that  period. 

Attention  was  first  drawn  to  this  picture  towards  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  when  the  Abbe  Carlo  Bianconi  wrote  thus  to 
Tiraboschi :  "  It  has  a  very  decided  look  of  Correggio.  .  .  .  There 
is  all  the  grandeur  and  simplicity  of  the  painter,  together  with  some- 
thing of  the  dryness  usual  in  his  early  works."  ^ 

It  was  then  at  Milan,  in  the  possession  of  one  Rossi,  whence  it  passed 
to  the  Parlatore  family,  of  Florence.  To  the  right  is  a  portion  of  a 
temple,  with  a  recess,  and  a  column  with  an  Ionic  capital.  Beyond 
lies  a  peaceful  valley  traversed  by  a  river,  the  waters  of  which  flow 
into  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  The  quiet  waters  of  the  lake  are  dotted 
with  little  islands.  Streaks  of  pale  light  illumine  the  sky.  This  part 
of  the  picture  bears  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  Crespi  example,  both 
in  the  landscape  and  the  architecture. 

On  his  knees,  his  arms  folded  on  his  breast,  Jesus  leans  forward  to 
the  Virgin,  who  falls  into  the  Magdalen's  arms,  overcome  with  emotion. 
St.  John  watches  the  painful  scene  from  behind  the  group,  his  hands 
devoutly  clasped.  The  sentiment  of  the  episode  is  vividly  and  touch- 
ingly  rendered,  notably  in  the  resigned  humility  of  the  Saviour's 
attitude,  in  the  anguished  face  of  the   Virgin,   and   in   the   expressive 

^  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  2S7.  Lanzi,  op.  a'f.  Morelli,  ii.  ]>.  150.  Frizzoni,  Arte  italiaiia 
dd Rinasdmcnto,  y.  356.  IllKstratcd  Catalo^^uc  of  -coor/^s  of  tlic  Sclwol  of  Fcrnini— Bologna, 
pp.  16-17.     London,  1894. 


I04  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

action  of  her  long,  thin  hands.  -  The  left  falls  helplessly  beside  her, 
but  the  right  is  raised  in  a  gesture  that  seems  to  say  :  "  Arise 
and  go." 

The  pictorial  elements  are  Ferrarese,  but  the  soul  that  animates  the 
conception  is  the  soul  of  Correggio.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the 
Saint  Martha,  also  in  London,  in  Lord  Ashburton's  collection. 

The  figures  in  this  picture  are  very  simply  disposed.  St.  Peter 
and  St.  Leonard  stand  on  either  side,  in  the  foreground.  Between 
them,  but  a  little  further  back,  are  St.  Martha  and  St.  Mary  Magdalen. 
The  background  represents  the  heart  of  a  wood,  a  mass  of  close- 
growing  foliage  and  tree-trunks,  on  one  of  which  a  woodpecker  is 
perched.  St.  Martha,  whose  face  expresses  a  gentle  melancholy,  leads 
a  little  dragon  by  a  string.  St.  Peter,  whose  attention  she  seems  to 
inv^oke,  looks  at  the  creature  with  knitted  brows.  A  gentle  smile 
hovers  on  the  lips  of  the  Magdalen.  St.  Leonard,  on  the  other  hand, 
gazes  heavenward  in  devout  ecstasy,  holding  in  his  right  hand  his 
prison-fetters.  Morelli  was  the  first  to  include  this  picture  among 
Correggio's  juvenile  works,  that  is  to  say,  among  those  painted  before 
the  Madonna  of  San  Francesco} 

All  other  biographers,  as  far  as  we  know,  assign  it  to  the  year  15 18.- 

We  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  we  agree  most  absolutely 
with  Morelli.  The  traditional  arrangement  of  the  figures,  the  long, 
scanty  folds  of  the  drapery,  many  of  them  perfectly  straight,  the 
modelling  ol  the  slender  hands,  the  fantastic  naivete  displayed  in 
the  treatment  of  the  dragon,  the  facial  types,  the  attitudes,  the  very 
defects,  insist  on  the  afliliation  of  this  work  to  the  Frizzoni  and  Crespi 
examples.  The  St.  Martha  is  true  sister  to  the  St.  P^rancis  in  Friz- 
zoni's  Marriage  of  St.  Catherine.  To  assign  a  later  date  than  that  of 
the  Dresden  altar-piece  to  this  picture  would  be  to  upset  the  entire 
system  of  evolution  as  applied  to  Correggio's  ecnvre.  Meyer,  in 
fact,  who  dated  it  1518,  was  much  perplexed  by  the  consequent 
necessity  of  reconciling  its  traditional  simplicity  of  conception  and 
forms  with  the  free  treatment  of  the  Repose   in  Egypt  in  the    Uffizi. 

^  Lc  vpcrc  dci  maestri  italiaiii,  \i.  124.     Italian  Pain tc is,  ii.  p.  15  J. 
-  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  59  et  sec/.      Bigi,  Betta  vita  e  delte  opere  di  A.  A.,  p.  52.      INIeycr, 
pp.  101-104,  365,  458.     Richter,  Correggio,  in  Kunst  und  Kiinstler,  p.  10. 


EARI.V    PK"1'URES    TIV    rORREOOIO  105 

Of   this    work   he   possessed   a    copy,  and,   according    to    him,   it   was 
painted  before  the  St.  JMarlha. 

This  chronological  confusion,  however,  was  based  on  a  historical 
error,  or  rather,  on  the  misinterpretation  of  certain  documents, 
which  we  will  briefly  examine. 

In  a  will  dated  December  16,  15 17,  a  certain  Melchiorre  Fassi 
bequeathed  his  estate  to  the  church  of  San  Ouirino  at  Correggio, 
on  condition  that  the  church  authorities  should  forthwith  build  a 
chapel  with  an  altar,  and  provide  it  with  an  altar-piece,  representing  St. 
Peter,  St.  Leonard,  St.  .Martha,  and  St.  Mary  Magdalen.  The  church, 
which  had  iallen  down  some  three  years  before,  was  in  course  of  re- 
construction, but  the  work  must  have  gone  on  very  slowly,  for  it 
was  not  finished  till  1550.  Maving  waited  some  time  for  the  carrying 
out  of  his  conditions,  Fassi  made  another  will  on  August  2Q,  1528, 
renewing  his  bequest  to  the  church  of  San  Ouirino,  but  associating 
the  church  of  .San  Domenico  in  the  benefit.  He  reiterated  his  former 
stipulation  as  to  building  the  chapel,  and  providing  the  picture,  adding 
further  that  the  figure  of  the  Madonna  should  be  introduced  in  the 
latter,  as  well  as  the  four  saints  already  mentioned.  Dissatisfied  after 
a  time,  he  changed  his  mind  altogether,  making  a  third  will,  by  which 
he  left  everything  to  the  church  and  hospital  of  Santa  Maria  della 
Misericord ia,  where  a  mass  was  to  be  said  in  perpetuity  for  the  repose 
of  his  soul  at  his  oi^'it  altar  of  St.  Martha.  A  picture  of  the  saint 
must  therefore  have  already  existed  here,  and  there  is  no  reason  to 
doubt  the  testimony  of  various  writers,  among  them  the  chronicler 
Zuccardi,  that  this  was  the  work  of  Correggio. 

It  has,  nevertheless  been  suggested  that  Fassi  actually  succeeded 
in  getting  his  picture  painted  by  Correggio  in  1517,  and  that,  not  being 
able  to  put  it  in  the  church  of  San  Ouirino,  he  placed  it  in  .Santa 
Maria  della  MIsericordia  instead,  ordering  another  in  152S,  with  the 
same  saints,  and  the  additional  figure  of  the  Virgin.  His  insistence 
on  the  subject  of  the  picture  is  to  be  explained  by  his  special 
devotion  to  these  four  saints,  under  whose  protection  he  must  have 
supposed  himself  to  be. 

There  is  absolutely  no  foundation  for  the  conjecture  that  the  picture 
was  ordered  in  1517,  and  painted  early  in  1518.     None  of  the  documents 

r 


To6  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

quoted  justify  such  a  conclusion,  cither  directly  or  indirectly.  Neither 
do  they  mention  the  name  of  any  artist  in  connection  with  the  work. 

All  we  know  with  any  certainty  is,  that  in  1528  Fassi  confirmed  the 
bequest  of  1517,  repeating  his  conditions  as  to  the  picture. 

But  how,  it  may  be  asked,  are  we  to  explain  the  fact  that  there  was 
a  picture  in  the  IMiscricordia  of  the  four  saints  mentioned  in  the 
documents  .''  In  the  most  natural  and  simple  manner  possible.  Fassi, 
who  was  familiar  with  Correggio,  as  we  know  from  a  deed  of  July  14, 
1517,  to  which  they  acted  as  joint  witnesses,  had  commissiont-d  him  to 
paint  a  picture  for  his  altar  in  the  Misericordia  some  years  before. 
When  the  church  of  San  Ouirino  was  restored,  his  devotion  to  the 
four  saints  again  found  expression  in  a  desire  to  see  them  figure  on 
another  altar.  The  slow  progress  made  by  the  builders  caused  the 
successive  alterations  in  his  will.  We  have  now  seen  that  none 
of  the  documents  in  cjuestion  support  the  theory  that  the  picture 
was  painted  immediately  after  the  drawing  up  of  the  first  will.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  character  of  the  work  itself  clearly  points  to  the 
conclusion  that  it  belongs  to  a  much  earlier  date  than  15 18,  when 
Correggio  had  shown  his  mastery  of  a  broader  and  more  confident 
style  in  several  examples  of  his  art.  The  picture  remained  in  its 
place  for  a  long  time.  There  is  a  legend  that  it  was  disfigured  by 
a  coat  of  dark  varnish,  to  prevent  it  from  being  carried  off  like  the 
Madonna  of  San  Francesco  and  the  Repose  in  Fgypt)  If  so,  we 
can  only  pity  those  who  adopted  an  absurd  expedient  without  ob- 
taining the  desired  result!  The  picture  crossed  the  seas,  the  varnish, 
if  it  ever  existed,  was  removed,  and  its  original  beauties  are  now- 
displayed  to  alien  eyes. 

These  early  works,  the  dense  and  vigorous  tones  01  which  recall 
Costa  in  his  second  period,  and  Francia,  are  followed  by  a  little  series, 
of  less  importance  as  compositions,  but  lighter,  more  transparent,  and 
more  limpid  in  colour. 

We  may  take  the  )'oung  /uuin,  or  Piping;  S//ep//eri/,  in  the  Munich 
Gallery  as  the  first  of  this  series.  Seated  on  a  knoll  at  the  foot  of  a 
clump   of   trees,   he   holds   the   pipe   to   his    lips,  and    plays.      To   his 

'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  256.  I'ungilconi,  ii.  j).  93;  iii.  pp.  ;oi  and  275.  MaUini,  S/iidi 
intorno  al  Correggio,  ]).  72  cti-. 


'irrURKS    l!V    CORRI'C.CIO 


right  lies  a  kind  i)t"  lute  ;  on  the  opposite  side,  beyond  the  clustering 
foliage,  opens  a  little  valley  with  a  browsing  animal.  The  discortlant 
tones  of  the  sky  and  mountains  are  remarkable,  and  the  treatment 
of  the  leaves  is  very  curious,  especially  in  the  solitary  tree  to  the 
left,  but  this  peculiarity  is  readily  explained  if  we  remember  in 
what  school  Correggio  received  his  first  training.  These,  however, 
together  with  one  or  two  other  unusual  traits,  convinced  Otto  Mundler 
that  the  picture  was  the  work  of  Pahiia  Vecchio.  Even  Morelli  sup- 
posed it  to  be  \'cnetian  for  some  time,  and  suggested  Lorenzo  Lotto 
as  the  author.  There  arc,  in  fact,  certain  affinities  between  Correggio 
and  the  latter,  especially  in  the 
illumination  of  certain  pictures, 
which  we  consider  purely  acci- 
dental. Morelli  after vvards  cor- 
rected his  first  impression,  re- 
cognising certain  characteristics 
of  Correggio.  such  as  the  curved 
shin,  the  peculiar  crispness  of 
the  hair,  and  the  straight  folds 
of  the  drapery.^ 

Pungileoni  tells  us  that  "in 
the  Casa  Ravizzi  at  Correggio 
there  was  a  picture  of  a  shep- 
herd adjusting  a  pipe  to  his 
lips."  -  This  would  seem  at 
the    first    blush   to    indicate    the  in  the  Munich G.iicr  ■ ' 

Munich   Faun  ;    but    the    state- 
ment is  taken  from    Brunorio,  who  goes  on  to  say  that  the  picture  in 
question  was  a  half-length   figure  of  a  shepherd  playing  the  bagpipes, 
a  description  which  excludes  all  possibility  of  identity. 

Two  small  pictures  closely  resembling  each  other  are  to  be 
found,  one  in  the  Communal  Museum  at  Pavia,  the  other  in  the 
Municipal  Museum  at  Milan.  The  former  has  been  much  injured 
by  unskilful  restoration  and  varnishing  ;  the  latter,  though  transferred 
to  canvas,  is  still  in  fair  condition.      In  both,  the  delicate  type  of  the 

1   .Morclli,  Italnui  Faiiitcis,  ii.  p.  198.  ~   Op.  at.  i.  p.  73  ;  ii.  p.  114. 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


smiling  Madonna  is  closely  allied  to  that  of  the  Virgin  in  the  Franciscan 
altar-piece.  The  little  panel  at  Pavia  originally  belonged  to  the 
Malaspina  family.  On  a  slip  of  cardboard  fastened  to  the  back  the 
name  and  arms  of  Luigi  Malaspina  of  Sannazaro  are  still  to  be  deci- 
phered. The  Virgin  lays  one  hand  under  the  arm  of  the  Infant 
Jesus,  who  leans  from  her  lap  towards  the  little  .St.  John.      St.  Joseph 

stands  to  the 
left,  and  to  the 
right  a  St.  Eliza- 
beth of  a  pro- 
nounced Man- 
tegnesque  type. 
The  old  ascrip- 
tion of  this  panel 
to  Francia,  and 
of  the  small  pic- 
ture in  the  I'fhzi 
to  a  Ferrarese 
master,,  attract- 
ed the  attention 
oi  Morelli,  who 
wrote  as  follows  : 
"It  is  strange 
that  Correggio's 
early  works  at 
Florence  and  at 
Pavia  should 
have  been  attri- 
buted, the  one  to  the  school  of  Ferrara,  the  other  to  Francia,  but  that 
neither  should  ever  have  been  ascribed  to  Mantegna."  ^  The  dis- 
tinguished critic  insinuates  that  this  is  an  argument  against  the  theory 
of  Mantegna's  influence  on  Correggio.  The  little  panel  in  the  Uffizi 
was,  as  a  fact,  more  persistently  ascribed  to  Titian  than  to  a  Ferrarese 
source.  But  setting  this  point  aside,  we  can  attach  no  importance 
whatever  to  the  attribution  of  the  Pavia  picture  to  Francia  ;  its  author 
^    I.e  operc  d(i  iiun-stil  italiaiii,  y.  124,  note  1. 


CORREGGIO. 


he  Cnmmunal  C-.lllei-y, 


[•ARLY    PK^TURF.S    I'.V   CORREGGIO  109 

must  have  lacked  the  most  elementary  knowledge  of  the  Bolognese 
master.  Ferrarese  elements,  especially  noticeable  in  the  softness  of 
contours  and  colom-s,  do  not,  and  could  not  fail  to  appear  in  Correggio's 
juvenile  works.      His  own  temperament,  the   atmosphere   in    which  he 


was  reared,  and  the  influence  of  the  masters  he  studied  under  in  his 
native  city  or  in  Mantua,  all  combined  to  produce  such  a  result. 
But  we  have  already  fully  discussed  this  question.  The  presence  of 
these  F"errarese  elements  in  his  works  sufficiently  explains  why  they 
were  never  attributed  to  Mantegna,  an  artist  of  the  strongest  in- 
dividuality,   whose    robust    power    of  expression    verged   at  times  on 


no  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGOIO 

the  harsh  and  violent.  But  though  we  admit  his  influence  on 
Correggio's  style  to  have  been  sHght,  we  cannot  minimise  its  import- 
ance in  relation  to  the  hitter's  conceptions,  and  his  enthusiastic  experi- 
ments in  the  foreshortening  of  the  human  body. 

The  somewhat  larger  picture  at  Milan,  formerly  in  the  Ambro- 
siana,  represents  the  Virgin  seated.  The  beautiful  Babe  on  her  lap 
rests  his  right  arm  on  the  little  St.  John's  left,  and  gazes  in 
astonishment  at  the  cross  the  latter  shows  him.  The  painter  has 
relieved  the  high  tones  of  the  figures  by  the  introduction  of  a  pilaster, 
one  side  of  which  is  in  deep  shadow  ;  the  other  is  enriched  with 
ornaments.  The  dark  portion  must  have  been  repainted  at  some 
time,  for  it  is  impossible  that  Correggio  could  have  laid  on  the  crude, 
strong  tint  which  makes  the  shadow  look  like  a  hole  in  the  picture. 
Some  branches  of  foliage  ajjpear  in  the  middle,  and  beyond  these 
stretches  a  valley,  watered  by  a  river  which  breaks  into  a  little  cascade. 
As  in  the  Pavia  picture,  the  Virgin's  mantle  is  drawn  over  her  head 
and  falls  across  her  right  cheek,  throwing  it  into  shadow.  Her  eyes 
are  half-closed,  the  eyelids  widely  distended.  This  picture,  which 
formerly  belonged  to  the  Counts  Bolognini,  has  been  transferred  from 
panel  to  canvas,  and  slightly  cleaned. 

The  type  of  the  Madonna  having  enabled  us  to  class  these  two 
pictures  together,  may  further  help  us  in  the  case  of  two  others, 
one  in  Prince  Leopold  von  Hohenzollern's  gallery  at  Sigmaringen,  the 
other  a  bequest  from  the  Campori  family  to  the  Estense  gallery  at 
Modena.  The  forms  are  less  meagre.  The  Virgin's  face  is  more 
softly  rounded,  her  nose  is  shorter  and  less  sharply  defined.  The 
hands,  though  still  long  and  slender,  are  slightly  thicker  in  the  fingers. 
The  children,  too,   are  sturdier  and  plumper. 

The  Madonna  of  the  Campori  picture  bends  over  the  Child,  who 
lies  on  her  lap,  a  linen  cloth  drawn  round  his  legs.  He  catches  at  her 
forefinger  with  his  left  hand,  and  stretches  out  his  right,  as  If  begging 
to  be  lifted.  The  action  of  the  two  little  hands  is  a  wonderful  study 
of  infant-life,  in  the  rendering  of  which  Correggio  is  unsurpassed. 

This  picture  was  at  one  time  in  the  castle  of  Soliera  (some  seven 
miles  from  Correggio),  which  was  stormed  and  taken   by   Duke  Cesare 


EARLY    I'lCTURF.S    ISV    CORREGGIO 


in  1599,  after  the  slaughter  of  Marco  Pio,  its  owner.  In  1636,  when 
Cardinal  Campori  bought  the  feoff  for  his  nephew  Pietro,  the  picture 
was  found  in  the  chapel  of  the  castle.  It  was  first  recognised  as  a 
work  of  Correggio 
by  the  painter, 
\'incenzo  Rasori.' 
The  Sigmar- 
ingen  picture  is 
a  finer  and  more- 
elaborate  work. 
The  pensive  Ma- 
donna sits  in  front 
of  a  bower  of  leafy 
verdure.  The 
Child  upon  her 
lap  plays  with 
the  scroll  of  the 
little  St.  John's 
cross,  at  which  he 
looks  with  aston- 
ished eyes.  St. 
Elizabeth, a  figure 
of  the  usual  Man- 
tegnesque  type, 
watches  the  group  ,    ,    ^        ,,  „      ... 

fc>  r  In  ihc  Estense  G.illery,  Modeiia. 

complacently.- 

This  closes  the  list  of  pictures  hitherto  discovered,  which  in  all 
probability  preceded  the  Madonna  of  San  Francesco. 

1  Munitorc  Toscciuo  of  December  24,  1852.  La  Ghirlandiiia  di  Modena,  No.  i. 
Modena,  1853.  Meyer,  p.  379,  etc.  The  picture  has  suffered  somewhat.  Among 
other  blemishes,  note  the  repainting  of  the  Virgin's  hand. 

2  Morelh,  Italian  Painters,  ii.  p.  151.  I'ritz  Harck,  Qiiadri  italiani  ndU  galleric 
private  di  Germania.  {Arc/iiv.  storico  dell'  arte,  vi.  p.  390.  Rome,  1893.)  There  is 
also  a  picture  at  Strasburg  said  to  be  a  ju\enile  work  by  Correggio. 


I  di  San  Paolo  i 


CHAPTER   VII 

A    PAINFUL    INTERLUDE 

TRAXSITION  PERIOD — THL  -'REPOSE  IN  EGYPT  "  IX  THE  UFFIZI  —  '"LA  ZIK'GARELI.a"  — 
THE  "madonna  with  THE  TWO  CHILDREN"  IN  THE  PRADO  AT  MADRID — THE 
"holy     FAMILY     WITH      ST.     JAMES  "     AT      HAMPTON     COURT — "THE      MADONNA      OF 

CASALMAGGIORe" — LOST    PICTURES— THE     "  HERODIAS  " THE     "TRIPTYCH     OF     THE 

redeemer" — CORREGGIO'S  SUPPOSED  JOURNEYS  TO  CARPI  AND  NOVELLARA— THE 
ALBINEA  PICTURE  AND  "THE  YOUNG  MAN    FLEEING    FROM    THE    CAPTORS    OF    CHRIST." 


IN  the  life  of  every  man  there 
is  a  transition  period,  a 
terrible  interliulc  of  depres- 
sion and  unrest  from  which  there 
is  no  escape.  He  eaters  upon 
it  when  he  ceases  to  be  a  boy, 
but  is  as  yet  hardly  a  man.  An 
ill-defined  craving  for  happiness 
keeps  him  in  a  state  of  perpetual 
tension.  The  blood  seems  to 
rush,  hot  and  tumultuous,  through 
his  veins.  In  strange  contrast 
to  the  still  childish  cast  of  his 
thoughts    in    general,    visions    of 


PICTURES  PAINTEI)  IN    1515  —  1518  113 

art  and  poetry  dawn  within  his  soul.  He  begins  to  love  the  solitude 
of  the  country  and  of  the  sea  ;  in  the  floating  clouds  above  him  he 
discerns  figures  of  monstrous  beasts,  or  rivers  and  snow-clad  moun- 
tains. The  world  spreads  out  her  beauties  and  pleasures  before  him  ; 
but  he  is  sad,  tormented  by  an  inexplicable  melancholy,  an  unreason- 
able resentment.  Now  this  strange  phase  of  transition  in  the  physical 
and  moral  being  frequently  has  its  spiritual  counterpart  in  the  aesthetic 
development  of  a  great  artist.  It  corresponds  to  that  painful  period 
when,  from  imitation,  he  passes  to  individual  mastery. 

The  workings  of  this  transition  betray  themselves  in  Correggio's 
ceuvre  between  15  15  and  151S,  that  is  to  say,  between  the  painting  of 
the  Madonna  of  San  Franccsio  and  the  frescoes  in  the  Camera  di 
San  Paolo,  the  period  in  which  he  produced  the  least  memorable  of 
his  works.  He  was  gradually  discarding  the  strong  and  vigorous 
colour,  the  traditional  simplicity  of  arrangement,  the  sobriety  of 
drapery,  all  the  characteristics,  in  short,  of  the  masters  he  had  admired 
and  studied,  for  more  personal  methods  of  expression.  But  these 
were  not  to  be  won  in  a  moment.  Striving  after  mellower,  more 
transparent,  and  warmer  colour,  he  only  achieved  the  red  tones  of 
Dosso ;  attempting  to  touch  the  calm  tranquillity  of  figures  and 
draperies  with  greater  life  and  animation,  he  was  not  always  equal  to 
the  difficulties  he  evoked,  and  is  often  confused  and  embarrassed  ;  and 
desiring  to  substitute  a  genial  humanity  for  the  contemplative  mysticism 
of  the  older  masters,  he  sometimes  failed  to  add  vivacity  of  expression 
to  poetry  of  conception.  Careful  on  the  one  hand,  to  avoid  mere 
panegyric,  we  need  not  fear  to  say  that  Correggio's  art  was  at  its  nadir 
at  this  period.  Had  he  never  painted  better,  either  before  or  after,  we 
should  have  known  him  only  as  one  of  the  band  of  Emilian  artists  who 
flourished  early  in  the  sixteenth  century. 

We  may  illustrate  our  opinion  by  a  striking  case  in  point.  The 
poor  quality  of  the  Repose  in  Egypt  in  the  Ufhzi,  notably  in  colour, 
long  caused  it  to  be  considered  a  copy,  which  was  variously  assigned 
to  Barocci,  to  Francesco  Vanni,  and  even,  strange  to  say,  to  Ales- 
sandro  Tiarini  ! '  The  picture  is  perfectly  authentic,  and /^ra'  Meyer, 
^   Lanzi,  op.  et  loc.  cit.      Meyer,  p.  99. 

Q 


114  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

its  history  is  straightforward  enough.  Our  conviction  as  to  its 
authenticity  is  strengthened  not  only  by  a  daily  familiarity  of  many 
years  with  Correggio's  greater  works,  hut  by  the  concurrence  of  several 
eminent  critics,  Morelli  and  Frizzoni  among  the  number.  The  treat- 
ment of  the  hair  and  hands,  the  pale  violet  tint  of  St.  Joseph's  robe, 
the  manner  in  which  the  colour  is  carried,  as  it  were,  into  the  folds  of 
his  white  girdle,  the  vagueness  of  some  of  the  contours  (a  quality 
beyond  the  power  of  a  copyist  to  reproduce),  the  spontaneity  of  ex- 
pression, which,  again,  no  copy  can  render,  modified,  as  it  necessarily 
must  be,  by  the  personality  of  the  reproducer — all  combine  to  convince 
us  that  this  picture  is  by  the  hand  of  Correggio.  If  any  lingering 
doubts  remained  in  our  mind,  they  were  dispelled  by  a  careful  study  of 
the  technique  of  La  Ziiigarclla,  a  work  Meyer  erroneously  supposes 
to  have  been  painted  about  1520. 

It  is  curious  to  note  how  the  traits  peculiar  to  this  stage  of  the 
painter's  development  appear  in  each  one  of  the  works  painted  at  the 
time.  Not  only  do  we  find  the  same  hot  tone  of  colour,  the  same 
haziness  in  the  landscape,  the  same  treatment  of  foliage,  the  same 
somewhat  puffy  extremities,  but  in  every  case  we  recognise  the  same 
facial  type  and  the  same  idea  of  drapery. 

The  oval-faced  Virgin,  with  a  large  mouth  and  rather  long  nose, 
and  the  Infant  with  the  tripartite  arrangement  of  the  hair,  a  long- 
central  lock  overhanging  the  middle  of  the  forehead,  are  to  be  found  in 
the  Repose  in  Egypt  of  the  Ufhzi,  in  the  Madonna  z^'itli  the  /wo  Children, 
at  Madrid,  in  the  J'irgin  and  Child  loith  St.  Joseph  and  St.  James, 
at  Hampton  Court  ;  they  also,  as  we  learn  from  surviving  copies, 
appeared  in  the  lost  Albinea  picture.  The  inclination  of  the  Virgin's 
head  is  another  characteristic  shared  by  the  three  latter.  Indeed,  the 
Virgin  and  Child  of  the  Prado  may  be  described  as  identical  with  the 
same  group  in  the  Hampton  Court  picture,  where  the  St.  Joseph  of  the 
Repose  in  Egypt  re-appears  as  St.  James.  The  hang  of  the  draperies 
is  still  very  sculpturesque,  and,  though  less  severe  than  in  the  pictures 
which  precede  the  San  Francesco  Madonna,  it  is  as  yet  unbroken  by 
that  i)lay  of  flowing  mantles  and  fluttering  veils  which  distinguishes 
the  Diana  of  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo,  and  succeeding  works.      The 


I.A   ZINGARRLLA  115 

robes  aru  little  more  than  ample  shirts,  which  the  painter  allows  to  lall 
in  vertical  folds  over  the  breasts  and  arms  of  his  figures,  a  mannerism 
he  afterwards  entirely  repudiated,  recognising  the  value  of  greater 
freedom  and  animation.  The  Ziii_s;arclla,  the  St.  Lucy  of  the 
Albinea  picture,  and  the  Madonna  of  the  Repose  in  Egypt  have 
another  distinguishing-  peculiarity  in  the  curious  fold  of  the  sleeve,  the 
upper  part  of  which  is  doubled  over  the  fore-arm,  wrapping  it  round 
like  a  bandage. 

These  singularities  of  colour,  type,  attitude,  and  drapery  mark  a 
stage  in  the  painter's  development  hitherto  neglected  by  the  critic. 
We  have  described  it  as  a  painful  interlude,  for  such,  we  are  well 
assured,  it  was  to  the  painter  himself  He  was  struggling  desperately 
to  express  his  own  personality,  despairing  at  times  of  reaching  the 
longed-for  goal,  determined  never  to  return  to  the  trammels  of  earlier 
formulce,  yet  oppressed  by  his  inability  to  give  life  to  the  ideas  that 
were  stirring  within  him,  eager  for  flight  and  liberty  as  a  flock  of 
caged  doves. 

In  the  Repose  in  Egypt,  an  episode  taken  from  one  of  the  apocry- 
phal gospels,  we  have  the  germ  of  the  future  Madonna  delta  Scodella 
(the  Virgin  with  the  Cup).  This  identity  of  motive  will  be  of  great 
help  to  my  readers  in  comparing  the  reproductions  of  these  two 
examples.  Such  a  comparison  will  show  the  difference  between 
Correggio,  as  yet  hesitating  and  embarrassed,  and  Correggio  in  full 
possession  of  his  powers,  more  forcibly  than  any  words  of  mine 
could  do. 

The  Virgin  is  seated  on  a  knoll,  near  a  palm-tree,  one  branch  of 
which  St.  Joseph  has  drawn  down  to  pluck  a  handful  of  dates,  which 
he  offers  to  the  Infant  Jesus.  The  Child,  standing  on  his  mother's 
knee,  stretches  out  his  hand  to  take  them,  looking  another  way,  as 
if  but  slightly  interested  in  the  matter.  St.  Francis  of  Assisi  kneels 
on  the  opposite  side  ;  the  ecstatic  rapture  of  his  face  and  attitude 
in  the  famous  altar-piece  at  Dresden  seems  entirely  quenched,  and 
the  other  figures  have  none  of  the  joyous,  radiant  air  that  is  to 
distinguish  them  in  the  Madonna  delta  Seodella.  The  saint's 
hands    are    somewhat  hard   and    angular,    and    the   Virgin's  left    arm 


ii6  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

is  ugly.  The  picture  is  not  without  beauty,  notably  in  the  composition, 
which  is  broadly  conceived,  and  instinct  with  a  sweet  familiarity  of 
sentiment,   but,   as  a  whole,   it  leaves  the  spectator  cold. 

This  work  was  also  originally  in  the  church  of  San  Francesco  at 
Correggio,  in  the  chapel  of  the  Munari  family.  It  was  removed 
by  Boulanger,  at  the  Duke  of  Modena's  command,  the  monks  agreeing 
to  the  transfer,  and  a  copy  was  substituted,  which  is  now  in  the  church 
of  San  Sebastiano  in  the  same  city.  Pungileoni  has  described  how  it 
afterwards  went  to  Florence,  and  Venturi  confirms  him.  In  1649 
Geminiano  Poggi  took  it  thither  and  exchanged  it  for  an  Abraliaui s 
Sacrifice  by  Andrea  del  Sarto,  now  at  Dresden. ^ 

The  picture  in  the  Naples  Museum  known  as  La  Ziiigarclla 
(The  Gipsy),  or  the  Madonna  i<.<itJi  the  Rabbit,  is  well  composed,  and 
most  poetically  conceived,  but  in  execution  it  is  inferior  to  most  of 
the  master's  works.  Allowances  must  be  made,  however,  for  a  certain 
amount  of  deterioration.  The  panel  is  covered  with  cracks,  many  of 
which  have  been  stopped  ;  the  colour  has  suffered,  and  the  work  has 
been  retouched  here  and  there. 

The  Virgin  is  seated  on  the  ground  in  a  forest  glade,  among 
low-growing  shrubs  and  bushes.  Her  hair  is  bound  turban-wise 
with  a  white  handkerchief  Over  her  white  dress  she  wears  a  bright 
blue  mantle.  The  Child  lies  on  her  lap,  supported  by  her  left  hand,  on 
which  he  la\-s  his  little  fingers  caressingly.  With  her  right  hand  she 
holds  one  of  his  feet,  as  in  the  Sigmaringen  picture.  The  Babe  is 
sleeping,  and  the  mother,  bending  tenderly  over  him,  seems  weary. 
As  in  the  Repose  in  Egypt,  the  two  figures  are  somewhat  crudely 
illuminated  by  a  warm  twilight  glow.  The  forest  round  them  is  full 
of  life  ;  a  rabbit  peers  at  them  curiously  from  the  left,  and  among 
the  palms  above  their  heads  hovers  a  band  of  angels,  which  some 
strange  fancy  of  the  artist's  has  caused  him  to  paint  in  the  greenish 
tones  of  antique  bronzes,  a  peculiarity  copied  by  some  of  his  disciples, 


'  Pungileoni,  i.  pp.  46,  47,  71,  72,  73;  ii.  i).  74.  Ad.  Venturi,  Gallcria  es/eiise, 
p.  242  et  seq.  There  was  a  good  copy  of  the  picture  at  the  exhibition  of  Correggio's 
works  held  at  Parma  in  1S94.  See  Ca/a/ogo  delta  iiiostra  Con-eggcsca  in  Panna,  No.  82 
p.  6.     Parma,  1894. 


'^nin         \ 


■M        j 


0»A\VA^ 


ISfADONNA   .WD   CHTL 


notably  Francesco  Maria  Rondani.  A  small  birci,  perched  on  a  twig 
over  the  Virgin's  shoulder,  seems  to  have  been  roused  by  the  flutter 
of  the  angels,  and  looks  alertly  round. 

An  Inventory  of  the    U'ardrobc  of  Ranuccio  Fariicse,  drawn  up  in 
1587,    shows   that    the    Zingixrclla   was   the    property   of    that   prince. 


In  the  Naples  Museum. 

By  his  will,  dated  July  23,  1607,  he  left  it  to  his  sister  Margherita. 
known  as  Sister  Maura  Lucenia,  a  nun  of  the  convent  of  San  Paolo 
of  Parma,  to  which  her  husband,  Vincenzo  Gonzaga,  Duke  of  Modena, 
consigned  her  in  1583,  because  of  her  sterility.  "  To  the  most  serene 
lady,  my  sister,    I    bequeathe,  as  a    token  of  the  love   I   have  always 


ii8  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

borne,  and  still  bear  her,  the  small  panel,  commonly  called  a  qiiadrctto 
(little  picture),  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  painted  by  the  famous 
painter,  Antonio  of  Correggio,  and  known  as  La  Cingarina,  the  which, 
with  all  my  remaining  movable  goods,  is  now  under  the  charge  of  the 
Cavaliere  Flaminio  Zunti."^ 

On  the  death  of  Sister  Maura,  the  picture  did  not  remain  in  the 
convent,  but  went  back  to  the  Farnese  family.  It  was  still  in  their 
possession  a  century  later,  and  was  removed  to  Naples  with  the  rest 
of  their  collection  in  1734,  when  King  Charles  I.  de  Bourbon  took 
possession  of  the  two  Sicilies,  and  made  the  city  his  capital.- 

We  have  classed  the  picture  in  the  Prado  at  Madrid  with  that 
at  Hampton  Court,  on  the  strength  of  the  close  affinity  between 
them. 

The  first  represents  the  Virgin  seated  on  the  ground  at  the  mouth 
of  a  cave,  and  watching  the  meeting  between  her  son  and  the  little 
St  John  with  evident  pleasure.  The  Inf^int  Jesus,  seated  on  her 
left  knee,  holds  out  his  arms  to  the  other  child,  who  advances  with 
his  arms  crossed,  walking  on  the  hem  of  the  Virgin's  robe,  and 
encouraged  by  her  supporting  hand.  The  execution  of  this  picture 
is  somewhat  harsh,  and  the  colour  a  little  hot  ;  the  left  arm  of  the 
Infant  Jesus  and  the  Virgin's  right  hand  and  arm  are  poorly  modelled. 
The  pose  of  her  legs  is  not  over-graceful,  and  her  feet  are  undeniably 
clumsy.  But  though  the  mastery  of  form  is  as  yet  incomplete,  there 
is   infinite  charm  and  poetry  in  the  familiar  little  scene. 

The  companion  picture  at  Hampton  Court,  which  was  in  Charles  I.'s 
collection,  is  more  delicate  and  refined  in  treatment,  and  shows  the 


^  Martini,  StuJi  iiitonw  al  Correggio,  p.  128.  C.  Ricci,  Di  alcuni  qiiadri  di  sciiola 
parmigiana  cotiservaii  7iel  R.  Museo  Nazionak  di  Napoli,  p.  4  et  seq.     Trani,  1894. 

2  Giuseppe  Campori,  Raccolta  di  catalogJii  ed  inventari  di  guadri.  pp.  52  and  225. 
Modena,  1870.  There  are  innumerable  copies  of  this  picture,  which  was  the  subject  of 
a  sonnet  by  the  famous  Cavaliere  Marino.  We  might  fill  three  or  four  pages  with  a  list 
of  these  various  repetitions.  One  in  the  Casa  Boscoli  was  attributed  to  Parmigianino, 
and  is  said  to  have  been  copied  most  minutely,  with  the  idea  of  counterfeiting  Correggio's 
work.  There  is  a  very  pleasing  replica  by  Girolamo  Mazzola-Bedoli  in  the  Poldi-Pezzoli 
collection  at  Milan.  Earocci  imitated  the  picture  in  his  Hagar,  now  in  the  Dresden 
Gallery.  For  many  others,  see  Pungileoni,  Zani  {Encichpcdia  artistiai,  jiart  ii.  v.  vi. 
p.  20),  Meyer,  etc. 


THE   CASALMAGGIORE   MADONNA  119 

influence  of  Dosso.  The  Infant  Jesus  differs  little  either  in  type  or 
pose  from  the  Child  in  the  Madrid  picture.  There  is  more  grace, 
however,  in  the  mother's  attitude.  She  supports  him  with  her  left 
hand  under  his  arm,  and  holds  one  of  his  little  feet  in  her  right. 
Her  face,  which  is  turned  towards  St.  James,  is  quietly  contemplative. 
St.  Joseph,  a  handsome  old  man,  leans  forward  to  the  right,  apparently 
in  deep  thought.^ 

Another  picture  which  belongs  to  this  group  as  to  period  is  the 
small  Madonna  luitk  the  tico  Children,  dated  151;,  discovered  by  Dr. 
Henry  Thode  at  Milan,  and  now  in  the  public  gallery  at  Frankfort- 
on-the-Main.  It  represents  the  Virgin,  seated,  with  the  Child,  who  is 
trying  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  little  St.  John.  The  latter  looks 
out  at  the  spectator,  pointing  to  the  Infant  Jesus.  Thode  believes 
this  to  be  the  picture  known  as  the  Casabnaggiorc  Illadonna,  which  was 
in  the  ducal  gallery  at  Modena,  having  been  carried  off  from  Casal- 
maggiore  when  Francesco  I.  occupied  the  district  in  1646.  It  is  said 
to  have  passed  from  Modena  into  France  towards  the  close  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  and  thence  into  England,  returning  once  more  to 
Italy  in  the  possession  of  an  English  lady,  and  finally  finding  a  home 
again  among  strangers. ^ 

The  larger  and  more  important  works  executed  by  our  painter  at 
this  period  have,  unhappily,  all  disappeared.  No  one,  we  believe, 
will  now  be  found  to  uphold  the  authenticity  of  the  so-called  Poii>-aii 
of  a  Physician  in  the  Dresden  Gallery,  which  was  at  one  time  supposed 
to  represent  the  distinguished  Correggese  Lombardi,  of  whom  we 
have  already  spoken,  at  another,  the  Modenese  doctor,  Grillenzoni.^ 
Meyer  declared  he  could  find  no  traces  of  Correggio  in  this  portrait. 


'   Mary  Logan,  Guide  to  tlie  Italian  Pictin-es  at  Hampton  Court,  p.  41.     London,  1S94. 

-  H.  Thode,  Correggid s  Madonna  von  Casalniaggiore  {F>-anl;furtcr  Zeitung,  No.  151, 
1890,  and  Jahrbuch  der  konigl.  preuss.  Kiinstsanimlungen,  xii.  p.  104  ct  seq.,  1891). 
Venturi,  Galleria  estense,  pp.  245  and  312. 

'  ScannelH,  p.  285  ;  Ratti,  p.  109  ;  Mengs,  ii.  p.  162  ;  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  277  ;  Venturi, 
Galleria  estense,  pp.  136  and  226;  Pungileoni  {op.  cit.  i,  p.  36;  ii.  pp.  51  and  199) 
supports  the  attribution  by  relating  that  Lombardi  gave  Correggio  a  codex  in  acknow- 
ledgment of  the  portrait,  and  seems  to  accept  a  tradition  which  assigned  it  to  the 
year  151S. 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


He  pronounced  it  a  mediocre  work,  wanting  in  animation,  poor  in 
modelling,  and  heavy  in  colour.  Morelli  was  pleased  to  suggest 
Dosso  as  its  author^  and  Liibke  gave  it  to  Lorenzo  Lotto.'-  As,  in 
any  case,  it  has  no  pretensions  to  be  Included  in  Correggio's  a-iivre,  we 
need  not  linger  over  its  history. 

In   addition    to   the   Madonna  of  San   Francesco,   at   Dresden,   the 

Repose  in  Egypt, 
at  Florence,  and 
the  St.  Martha 
in  London,  the 
city  of  Correggio 
once  owned  oth- 
er early  works  by 
Allegri,  among 
them  a  Herodias, 
a  triptych,  and, 
if  we  accept  the 
testimony  of  wit- 
nesses already 
quoted,  certain 
frescoes  in  the 
palace  and  villa 
of  the  Signori. 
All  such  me- 
morials of  her 
great  master 
have,  however, 
disappeared  from 

the  city.  Like  Urbino,  she  retains  nothing  of  her  famous  son  but 
his  name 

No  trace  whatever  remains  of  the  Herodias  receiving  tlie  Head  of 
John  the  Baptist  from  the  Executioner.  In  17S3  Antonioli  wrote  as 
follows  to  Girolamo  Tiraboschi  :  "  It  must  certainly  have  been 
ordered  by  the  Countess  Veronica  after  her  return  from   Brescia,   and 

'    Italian  J\ilii/as,  li.  p.   158.  -  Einii  sur  nni.loirc  etc  fart,  ii.  p.  256. 


In  the  Prado,   Madri 


LOST    IRiriNCII     i;\    (ORRI'CCMO  121 

after  the  terrible  catastrophe  of  the  capture  of  that  city  by  the.  French 
under  the  haughty  Gaston  de  I'\)ix."  '  The  potential  form  of  this 
statement,  which  lacks  the  confirmation  of  other  documents,  makes  it 
of  little  value  as  evidence. 

It  has  been  asserted  1)\'  some-  writers  that  this  picture  was 
originally  in  the 
oratory  of  the 
Misericordia.  In 
a  manuscript  let- 
ter quoted  by 
Tiraboschi  and 
P  u  n  g  i  1  e  o  n  i  , 
signed  with  the 
p  s  e  u  d  o  n  )'  m 
Pictro  Rails,  of 
Bcriic,  these 
words  occur: 
"  There  were 
also  two  other 
pictures  in  the 
said  hospital  by 
the  same  painter, 
which,  although 
early  works, 
were  so  greatly 
prized  that  cer- 
tain ignorant 
ofificials,    fearing 

they  might  be  carried  off,  caused  them  to  be  covered  with  a  thick 
varnish,  which  destroyed  all  their  beauty."  One  of  these  two 
pictures,  was,  as  we  know,  Lord  Ashburton's  Sf.  Martha  ;  the  other 
is  supposed  to  have  been  the  Hcrodias.  But  Brunorio's  testimony 
seems    to    us    an    insuperable  obstacle    to    this    belief.     Without    rc- 


nkfoi-t  on-the-Ma 


Bigi,  Delia  vita  c  dclle  opa-c,  etc.,  p. 


122  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

terring  at  all  to  the  hospital,  he  expressly  states  that  the  picture 
belonged  originally  to  the  Lords  of  Correggio,  but  that  in  his  time 
it  was  said  to  have  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Venetian  noble, 
Grimani.i  Now  the  Hcrodias  was,  as  a  fact,  in  Venice  in  1666.  It 
figures  in  an  inventory  drawn  up  in  that  year,  of  pictures  included  in 
Nicolo  Renier's  lottery,  from  which  it  no  doubt  passed  to  the  Grimani.'- 

Among  the  pictures  in  this  inventory  we  find  another  attributed  to 
Correggio  :  "  A  nude  figure  of  the  Saviour  seated  upon  a  rainbow,  and 
surrounded  by  a  glory  of  angels." 

This  entry  raises  the  question  of  another  lost  work  of  Correggio's. 

On  the  high  altar  of  the  oratory  of  Santa  Maria  della  Miserlcordia 
there  was  once  a  triptych,  the  central  panel  of  which  represented  Christ 
the  Redeemer,  the  left  wing  St.  John  the  Baptist,  and  the  right  wing 
St.  Bartholomew.  On  this  triptych  Siro  of  Austria,  the  last  prince 
of  Correggio,  cast  longing  eyes  in  16 12,  and  he  eventually  struck  a 
bargain  for  it  with  the  prior  and  syndic  of  the  fraternity.  In 
December  of  the  same  year  it  was  valued  by  Giacomo  Borboni,  an 
artist  of  Novellara :  "  Having  diligently  examined  and  considered 
them   to  the   satisfaction   of   my  conscience,    I   value    the   said    three 

figures  at  one  hundred  great  ducats  of  eight  lire  each a  copy 

of  the  said  three  figures  to  be  given  into  the  bargain." 

The  compact  was  sealed.  The  Correggese  protested,  and  opposed 
the  sale,  but  Siro  or  the  Brotherhood  managed  to  gain  the  sanction  of 
the  Bishop  of  Reggio,  "  by  ordinance  from  Rome,"  and  to  complete 
the  necessary  preliminaries  in  the  autumn  of  16 13.'  Borboni  also 
made  a  copy,  which  was  duly  substituted  for  the  original. 

Tiraboschi  supposed  that  Don  Siro's  collection  was  taken  to 
Mantua,  and  that  his  pictures  perished  during  the  sack  of  the  city 
in  1630.      But  this  was  not  the  case.      Robbed  of  his  dominion,   which 

'  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  58;  ii.  p.  96,  and  iii.  p.  274.  Martini,  S/i/di  intonio  a/  Correggio, 
p.  72.     Meyer,  p.  402. 

-  Ordini  e  regole  stahilite  dagli  III.  Sig.  proveditori  di  comiin  li  8  dicembre,  1 656,  in 
materia  d'  11  n  lotto  di  quadri  .  .   .  di  Nicolo  Ranieri. 

•'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  255.  Pungileoni,  i.  pp.  50-55  ;  ii.  p.  82  et  seq.  I/itorno  a  una 
pittiira  del  Correggio  rappresentante  San  Giovanni  esistente  in  Bologna  {Memorie  originali 
italiane  risgiiardanti  le  belle  arti,  raccolte  da  M.  A.  Giialandi),  series  ii.,  p.  163  et  seq. 
Bologna,  1841.     Bigi,  op.  at.  p.  45.     Martini,  Stiidi,  p.  67.     Meyer,  pp.  100  and  375. 


i.os'i'  TRii'ivcii  i!V  ('()RRK(;(;to  123 

was  conferred  on  Francesco  I.  of  Modena  by  imperial  edict,  the 
prince  endeavoured  to  save  as  nuicli  as  possiljle  of  his  personal 
property.  He  invoked  the  aid  of  the  Lords  of  Novellara,  begging 
them  to  receive  his  pictures  by  Correggio,  and  take  charge  of  them 
for  him.  They  were  formally  handed  over  in  June,  1635.  But  when 
Don  Siro,  who  came  back  to  Mantua  nine  years  later,  claimed  his 
own  again,  the  Lords  of  Novellara  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  his  demand. 
A  second  appeal  was  no  more  successful,  and  the  unlucky  Siro  died 
at  Mantua  on  October  25,  1645,  without  having  recovered  his 
property. 

From  this  point  onward  the  history  of  the  triptych  becomes 
hopelessly  involved.  Every  attempt  to  trace  it  is  baffled  by  a  mass 
of  contradictory  statements  and  bewildering  inaccuracies.  The  un- 
certainty as  to  the  subject  of  the  central  panel,  which  is  variously 
stated  to  have  represented  God  the  Father  and  Christ  the  Redeemer, 
and  the  numerous  copies  of  the  S/.  John,  many  of  which  passed  as 
the  original,  and  were  entered  as  such  in  catalogues,  have  combined 
to  weave  a  web  of  difficulties  which  it  is  no  longer  possible  to  dis- 
entangle, failing  the  originals  which  might  have  served  as  a  clue. 

Of  the  St.  Bartholoniciv  nearly  every  trace  has  disappeared.  The 
central  panel  was  long  supposed  to  be  identical  with  a  Christ  seated 
upon  the  clouds,  with  extended  arms,  and  surrounded  by  angels, 
known  as  the  Unianita  di  Crista,  or  Christ,  the  Son  of  Man,  which 
Count  Marescalchi  of  Bologna,  Napoleon  L's  minister,  bought  from 
one  Giuseppe  Armano,  a  picture-dealer.  It  appears  to  have  been 
claimed  by  the  pontifical  government,  and  brought  back  from  P'rance 
to  the  Vatican,  where  it  has  remained  since  1832.  It  is,  however,  a 
late  work  of  the  Bolognese  school,  coarse  in  execution,  heavy  and  hot 
in  the  shadows,  with  little  gradation  of  tones  throughout.  Morelli 
and  Meyer  correctly  assign  it  to  the  school  of  the  CarraccI,  and 
Miindler  suggests  Annibale  rather  than  Lodovico  as  its  author,  on  the 
grounds  that  Annibale's  colour  was  brighter  and  more  delicate,  and 
that  he  is  known  to  have  copied  many  of  Correggio's  works.  It  may 
indeed  be  a  copy  of  the  central  figure  in  Don  Siro's  triptych,  by 
Annibale  Carracci. 


J 24  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

Count  Marescalchi  told  Pungileoiii  in  a  letter  written  in  1815 
that  Armano  had  bought  it  from  the  Gritti  family  in  Venice,  who 
stated  that  it  was  originally  in  the  Renier  collection.  It  seems  evident, 
therefore,  that  this  was  the  Nude  Figure  of  the  Saviour  seated  on  a 
Raitiboiv  of  the  lottery  of  1666. 

The    territory    of    Novellara    remained   in    the    possession    of  the 
Gonzaga  family  till  the  death  of  Count  Filippo  in    1728,   when  it  was 


declared  the  property  of  the  Emperor.  Charles  VI,,  however,  ceded 
it  to  Rinaldo,  Duke  of  Modena,  in  compensation  for  a  large  sum  of 
money  he  owed  to  the  duke.  The  collection  of  pictures  in  the  castle 
passed  to  Count  Filippo's  sister,  Maria  Ricciarda,  wife  of  Alderano 
Cibo,  Duke  of  Massa.  She  seems,  however,  to  have  cared  little  for 
the  legacy,  perhaps  because  her  home  was  a  long  way  from  Novellara. 


LOST  TRiriNCH    \)\    CORRIXIOIO  125 

The  pictures  were  left  in  the  castle,  and  the  collection  was  rifled  from 
time  to  time,  notably  in  1770,  when  it  was  removed  on  the  sale  of  the 
castle  to  the  commune  by  Francesco  III. 

A  few  of  the  pictures  still  remained  in  Novcllara,  however,  at  the 
time  of  the  French  invasion,  and  here,  in  the  year  1797,  one  Panelli 
bought  a  figure  of  St.  John  the  Baptist  holding  a  cross,  which  eventually 
passed  into  the  hands  of  Dr.  Giuseppe  Bianconi  of  Bologna.^  Meyer 
questions  its  identity  with  the  St.  John  Baptist  of  the  triptych  for 
a  variety  of  reasons,  but  mainly  because  it  appeared  among  the 
Novellara  pictures  without  the  companion  figures  of  the  Saviour,  and 
St.  Bartholomew  •  because  the  catalogue  of  the  Gonzaga  collection  in 
which  it  figures  was  compiled,  he  says,  />c/o;r  Don  Siro  of  Austria 
made  his  deposit,  and  finally,  because  this  catalogue  records  the  price 
of  the  picture,  showing  that  the  Gonzaghi  bought  it,  and  had  not 
received  it  in  trust.  Unfortunately,  there  is  nothing  conclusive  in 
these  arguments.  The  price  entered  in  the  catalogue  is  not  the  sum 
given  for  the  picture,  but  the  valuation,  usual  and  necessary  in  every 
inventory  of  goods,  however  acquired.  The  catalogue,  again,  was  not 
compiled  before  1635,  the  date  of  Siro's  deposit,  but  after  the  death  of 
Filippo  in  1728.-  Lastly,  we  see  no  reason  why  the  ^S7.  /o/i/i  of  the 
triptych  should  not  have  been  bereft  of  its  companion  figures.  The 
triptych,  as  we  gather  from  various  documents,  was  always  in  three 
parts,  held  together  by  a  frame,  which  Siro,  no  doubt,  left  in  the 
church  for  Borboni's  copy. 

But  though  Meyer's  arguments  do  not  convince  us  that  Professor 
Bianconi's  SL  John  Baptist  was  never  part  of  the  lost  trii^tych,  we 
have,  on  the  other  hand,  no  positive  proof  that  it  was.  All  that 
research  has  been  able  to  establish  with  any  certainty  is,  that  a 
picture  of  the  saint  was  once  at  Novellara,  that  there  it  was  bought 
by  a  certain  Panelli,  and  that  it  descended  from  him  to  Professor 
Bianconi. 

The  disputed  work  may  indeed  be  a  copy  from  the  original,  for  a 
great   many   were    made   besides     the    one    e.xecuted     by     Borboni    at 

'   Intorno  a  una  pittKra  del  Corret^gio,  quoted  above. 
■'  Gius.  Campori,  Invciitari  e  ca/atog/i/,  pp.  638-639. 


126  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Siro's  command.  Our  reproduction  is  from  an  engraving  by  Colom- 
bini,  after  a  copy  which  was  in  the  Marchese  Alfonso  Tacoli 
Canacci's  collection  in  the  eighteenth  century.  As  usual,  it  claimed 
to  be  the  original. ^ 

Be  this  as  it  may,  it  will  at  least  give  us  some  idea  of  the 
lost  triptych.  The  exaggerated  length  of  the  figure  here  repro- 
duced seems  to  us  almost  a  conclusive  proof  that  it  originally  formed 
part  of  some  such  composition,  for  it  is  impossible  to  suppose  that 
the  painter  would  have  chosen  this  high,  narrow  form  for  a  picture, 
unless  it  had  been  one  of  a  series,  adapted  to  architectural  exigencies."-^ 

In  conclusion,  we  must  regretfully  acknowledge  that  it  is  impossible 
to  evolve  any  very  definite  idea  from  this  confusion  of  evidences.  It 
seems  but  too  probable  that  no  portion  of  the  original  triptych  has 
survived. 

To  the  works  we  have  now  enumerated  as  painted  by  Correggio 
after  his  return  from  Mantua,  and  before  his  removal  to  Parma, 
historians  add  certain  others,  which  he  is  supposed  to  have  executed 
outside  his  native  city,  during  brief  sojourns  at  Carpi,  at  Noveliara, 
and  at  Albinea,  a  spot  not  far  from  Reggio.  The  Albinea  picture 
is  the  only  one  of  which  we  have  any  definite  history,  but,  as  we  shall 
see,  Allegri  painted  it  in  Correggio,  and  must  have  taken  it  to 
Albinea  on  its  completion.  Relying  on  existing  records  of  a  picture 
attributed  to  Correggio  representing  the  Virgin  and  Child  with  Saints, 
in  the  church  of  San  Nicolo  at  Carpi,  Tiraboschi,  after  confusing  this 
picture  in  a  curious  manner  with  the  Franciscan  altar-piece  at  Dresden, 
continues  thus  :  "  It  seems  certain  that  our  Antonio  made  occasional 
sojourns  at  Carpi,  for  among  the  attesting  witnesses  to  a  deed  executed 


'    Catalogue  raisoniic  lAs  tableaux  de  A.  Tacoli  Cauaai  a  Florence,  \\.  65.    Paniia,  1796. 

-  Signer  Enrico  Cattini,  of  Correggio,  owns  another  .SV.  John  the  Baptist,  identical  in 
all  respects  with  the  above,  which  he  bought  in  1885  from  Signor  Napoleone  Vernizzi. 
He  is  of  opinion  that  it  is  the  original,  and  is  supported  in  this  belief  by  several  artists. 
See  Alberto  \ioxc\a.n\,  Per  un  (juadro  atfribuito  al  Correggio.  Reggio-Emilia,  1890.  We 
have  examined  the  picture  most  carefully,  but  it  is  in  such  a  wretched  condition  that  we 
found  it  impossible  to  form  an  opinion.  A  St.  John  at  Carzeto  di  Soragna  has  also  been 
ascribed  to  Correggio,  but  connoisseurs  recognise  in  it  the  hand  of  Parmigianino. 
Pungileoni,  i.  p.  53. 


FRESCOES    AT    NOVELLARA 


at  Carpi,  January  19,  1512,  \vc  find  Antonio  Corrigio."  ^  The  argu- 
ment he  advances  is  scarcely  worth  discussion.  Who  can  say  how 
many  citizens  of  Correggio,  bearing  the  very  common  name,  Antonio, 
may  have  visited  the  neighbouring  town  of  Carpi 
from  time  to  time  ?  As  the  document  makes  no 
mention  of  the  witness'  surname,  his  father's 
name,  nor  his  profession,  it  serves  no  practical 
purpose  whatever. 

Again,  there  are  no  direct  evidences  ot  Allegri's 
traditional  sojourn  in  the  castle  of  Novellara,  where 
he  is  supposed  to  have  worked  between  i  5  i  5  and 
15  iS.  We  have  already  touched  on  this  point, 
which  it  will  be  well  to  examin*-  a  littk:  more  closely 
here. 

In  Yincenzo  Davolio's  Monoric  storiche  di 
Novellara,  a  manuscript  preserved  in  the  Casa 
Fabrici,  the  following  passage  occurs  :  "  Within  the 
castle,  the  munition  and  the  chambers  of  the  great 
tower  were  altered  and  improved,  and  afterwards 
adorned  with  paintings  by  Master  Antonio,  Master 
Latino,  and  two  young  men,  all  of  Correggio  ;  this 
we  learn  from  the  account  books,  and,  among 
others,  from  the  toll-book  of  the  inn  at  Novellara, 
where  under  section  AA,  No.  3,  in  an  entry 
referring  to  the  estate  of  Giovanni  Antonio  dei 
Savi  di  Bagnolo,  host  of  the  market-inn  at  Novellara,  for  which  he  paid 
an  annual  rent  of  twenty  gold  ducats,  the  following  appears  on  page 
171  :  Item  due  according  to  a  list  of  15 14,  rohich  zvas  not  approved, 
scudi  2  .  12.0  for  lodging'  blasters  Antonio  and  Latino,  the 
painters,  and  their  folloivers."  This  is  repeated  several  times  after- 
wards. These  two  painters  were  employed  by  Caterina  Torelli,  the 
widow  of  Gian  Pietro  Gonzaga.  Among  the  rooms  they  painted  was 
a    cabinet    for    Costanza    da    Correggio,     the    bride    of    Alessandro 


LOST  TRIPTYCH. 


Op.  at.. 


128  ANTONIO    DA    ("ORREGGIO 

Gonzaga.^  Now  the  very  phraseology  of  these  old  documents  them- 
selves first  caused  us  to  question  the  assumption  that  Correggio  was  one 
of  the  painters  mentioned.  They  speak  of  Master  Antonio,  Master 
Latino,  and  ti^'o  young  men.  Such  a  description  could  hardly  have 
been  applied  to  the  latter  as  distinguishing  them  from  Correggio  in 
1 5 14,  when  he  himself  was  only  twenty.  The  inference  clearly  is  that 
"  Master  Antonio  "  was  a  man  of  mature  age,  and  what  more  probable 
than  that  the  painter  in  question  was  Antonio  Bartolotti  of  Correggio, 
who  was  then  accounted  one  of  the  best  artists  of  the  neighbourhood, 
and  who  had  a  studio  and  numerous  pupils  and  assistants  ? 

The  various  payments  made  in  the  course  of  the  next  four  years, 
and  recorded  in  the  documents  examined  by  Davolio,  show  that  a 
large  portion  of  the  castle  was  restored  and  decorated,  and  that  the 
work  was  a  long  and  laborious  one.  But  it  was  just  at  this  time  that 
Correggio  was  engaged  on  several  important  works  in  his  own  city, 
such  as  the  Madonna  of  San  Francesco,  the  Repose  in  Egypt,  the 
triptych  of  the  Redeemer,  and  the  Madonna  of  Albinea. 

But,  it  will  be  objected,  how  are  we  to  set  aside  the  direct  evidence 
of  the  Ganymede  painted  by  Correggio  in  a  little  room  of  the  ground 
lloor — the  boudoir,  in  fact,  prepared  for  Donna  Costanza  ? 

Davolio  describes  the  decoration  of  this  cabinet  as  follows  :  "It 
represented  a  bower  or  arbour,  divided  into  three  sections  on  each 
wall  by  a  like  number  of  terms  or  caryatids  ;  the  faces  of  some  of 
these  are  still  perfectly  fresh  and  mellow  ;  each  was  the  portrait  of  a 
youthful  person  of  the  day.  Around  and  between  these  on  every  side 
spreads  a  marvellous  trellis  of  vines,  tree-trunks,  branches,  leaves,  and 
fruit  of  every  sort,  fresh,  glowing,  and  life-like,  rendered  with  infinite 
variety  of  perspective.  In  the  middle  of  the  vault,  the  trellis  seems  to 
open,  showing  the  sky  above,  and  Jupiter,  in  mantle,  crown,  and  sceptre, 
seated  upon  the  eagle,  who  spreads  his  wings  for  flight,  bearing  with 
him  Ganymede.  The  youth  clings  to  the  eagle's  neck  with  one  arm  ; 
the  rest  of  his  body  is  entwined  between  the  legs  and  wings  of  the 
bird.      In  the  highest  part  of  the  sky  appears  a  goddess  in  a  little  car 

'  Bigi,  op.  fit.  \>.  9.  Celcstino  IMalagoli,  Memorie  itoriche  su  Lelio  Orsi,  ]).  10. 
Guastalla,  1892. 


FRESCOES    AT    NOVELLARA  129 

drawn  by  white  doves.  The  whole  is  foreshortened  in  Correggio's 
well-known  manner  ;  the  colours  are  so  vivid  and  natural  that  the  work 
might  have  been  completed  only  a  few  years  ago.  Some  genii,  also 
much  foreshortened,  are  ranged  round  the  edge  of  the  opening,  and 
hang  over  the  head  of  the  si)ectator,  who  is  tempted  to  catch  them  by 
the  legs,  so  boldly  do  they  stand  out  from  the  vault." 

It  is  upon   this  central   medallion,   accordingly,   that  the  burden  of 


proof  devolves.  Here  we  have  the  "artistic  document"  which  should 
convince  us  that  the  "  Antonio  "  who  painted  Costanza's  bower  between 
1515  and  1518  was  not  Bartolotti,  but  Allegri.  Fortunately,  this 
fragment  of  the  fresco  has  survived.  It  was  transferred  to  canvas  in 
1845  by  a  certain  Giovanni  Rizzoli  della  Pieve  di  Cento,  at  Duke 
Francesco  IV.'s  command,  and  is  preserved  in  the  gallery  at  Modena.' 
1   Malagoli,  op.  cit.,  p.  10.     Ad.  Venturi,  Galkria  estoise,  p.  438. 


i,So  ANTONIO    DA   CORRRGGIO 

To  say  that  it  is  in  Correggio's  manner  seems  to  us  a  sufficiently 
grave  critical  error  ;  but  to  class  it  among  the  master's  juvenile  works 
argues  an  absolute  incapacity  for  critical  appreciation  of  any  sort. 
Meyer,  followed  by  other  writers,  saw  that  it  was  impossible  to  make  the 
evidences  of  the  work  itself  and  of  the  documents  relating  to  it  agree. 
He  accordingly  assigned  it  to  the  year  1530  approximately,  believing  he 
recognised  in  it  Correggio's  later  manner,  and  a  certain  affinity  with 
the  frescoes  in  the  cupola  of  Parma  Cathedral.^ 

It  is  unquestionably  by  a  painter  who  had  studied  Correggio,  but  of 
one  who  had  also  studied  Giulio  Romano,  more  especially  in  the  works 
executed  by  the  latter  at  the  Palazzo  del  Te  at  Mantua,  between  1532 
and  1534.  In  these  we  note  an  idiosyncrasy  which  is  exactly  repro- 
duced in  the  Jove  and  the  two  goddesses  of  the  Modena  roundel.  This 
is  a  proclivity  for  effects  of  foreshortening  in  figures  turned  full  to  the 
spectator,  or  sinking,  in  profile,  the  head  turned  over  the  shoulder. 
Of  such  effects  (the  most  facile  of  all)  Giulio  made  an  excessive  use, 
whereas  Correggio  avoided  them  as  much  as  possible.  The  figure  of 
Ganymede,  again,  is  awkward  and  contorted,  reminding  us  of  nothing 
so  much  as  of  the  triple  legs  in  the  arms  of  .Sicily  !  This  contortion  of 
a  figure  in  profile  is  simply  the  device  of  an  artist  who  was  unable  to 
master  the  difficulties  of  a  real  foreshortening.  Note,  too,  the  manner 
in  which  the  head  is  attached  to  the  torso,  and  the  peculiar  character 
of  the  hands,  not  a  single  one  of  which  throughout  the  fresco  is 
modelled  as  are  Correggio's  hands  in  his  last  and  greatest  frescoes. 
Compare  the  masterly  treatment  of  hair  in  Correggio's  authentic  works 
with  the  shock  head  of  the  Ganymede,  and  the  general  tone  of  colour 
with  Allegri's  transparent,  pearly  tints. 

We  are  only  concerned  here  to  show  that  the  fresco  is  not  by 
Correggio.  But  were  we  called  upon  to  substitute  the  name  of  some 
other  artist  in  place  of  his,  we  should  confidently  suggest  that  of  Lelio 
Orsi  of  Novellara,  who  was  born  in  151 1,  and  died  in  1587.  Other 
works  of  his  have  been  from  time  to  time  ascribed  to  Correggio, 
among  them  the  mural  frescoes  removed  from  the  summer  villa  of  the 

'  Meyer,  pp.  242  and  355.     Martini,  p.  301.     Venturi,  op.  et  loc.  cit. 


THE    ALBINEA    MADONNA  T31 

Gonzaghi  in  this  same  district,  and  now  in  the  possession  of  a  lady 
named  Gerard,  at  Wiesbaden.^ 

Not  only  is  Lelio  known  to  have  worked  industriously  in  his  native 
district  for  the  Gonzaghi,  and  to  have  imitated  Correggio  :  between  his 
best  authenticated  works  and  this  Ganymede  there  are  undeniable 
affinities,  both  in  sentiment  and  technique. 

We  may  therefore  conclude  that  among  all  the  wanderings  imputed 
to  Correggio  by  his  biographers,  the  only  journey  duly  attested  is  that 
to  Albinea. 

Let  us  endeavour  to  trace  the  history  of  the  picture  he  painted  for 
the  church  of  this  little  settlement,  with  the  help  of  certain  memoirs, 
and  some  original  documents  belonging  to  the  parish. 

Albinea  -  lies  some  few  kilometres  from  Reggio,  on  the  slope  of 
one  of  the  hills  which  follow  the  main  ridge  of  the  Apennines  to  the 
right  of  the  wide  valley  of  the  Po.  A  house  of  some  size,  and  a  little 
church,  which  has  been  rebuilt  several  times,  but  which  existed  in  the 
eleventh  century,  rise  tranquilly  in  its  midst. 

The  chroniclers  tell  us  that  Correggio  came  here  between  i  5 1 7  and 
1 5 18  to  paint  a  picture  for  the  parishioners  ;  they  also  repeat  a  legend 
noted  in  one  of  the  papers  referred  to,  that  the  parish  paid  the  artist 
thirty  so/di  a  day  as  salary,  that  the  church  provided  canvas  and 
colours,  and  that  the  arch-priest,  Giovanni  Guidotto  di  Roncopu,  gave 
the  painter  food  and  lodging.  A  letter  recently  discovered  in  the 
Reggian  archives  ^  fixes  the  date  at  which  the  picture  was  begun,  but 
further  shows  that  Correggio  painted  it  in  his  native  city.  This  letter, 
dated  May  12,  151 7,  is  from  the  arch-priest  to  one  Alessandro 
Malaguzzi  of  Reggio,  begging  him  to  write  to  Correggio,  and  per- 
suade him  to  execute  the  work  in  the  manner  already  suggested  by 
Malaguzzi,  to  ensure  its  durability,  always  providing  the  picture  were 
not  already  so  far  advanced  as  to  make  alterations  impossible.  He 
makes  a  further  vague  allusion  to  some  picture  of  the   INIagdalcn,  of 

1  Henry  Thode,  Lelio  Orsi  e  gli  ajfrescln  del  "  Casino  di  Sopm  "  presso  Novellara 
{Aniiiv.  storico  delle  arte,  iii.  p.  366  et  seq.  Rome,  1891).  Readers  will  find  many  points 
of  resemblance  between  the  Ganymede  medallion  and  the  frescoes  reproduced  in  Thode's 
study.  2   .Ylso  called  Bineia  and  Benelia. 

'  Archivio  storico  dell'  arte,  p.  90.     Rome,  1888. 


132  ANTONIO   DA   CORREGGIO 

whicli  we  can  find  no  other  trace.  On  October  14,  15 19,  the  priest 
was  in  Correggio,  when  he  made  a  final  payment  of  four  ducats  to 
the  painter,  and  obtained  from  him  a  receipt  in  full  for  all  charges 
connected  with  the  altar-piece.^ 

The  picture  remained  in  the  church  until  1647,  '■''  which  year  it 
was  taken  away  "with  violence"  by  the  public  representatives  of  the 
commune  of  Albinea,  and  consigned  to  Duke  Francesco  I.,  who  had 
"  shown  an  inclination   for  it." 

The  sequel  was  as  follows.  The  representatives  had  first  signified 
the  Duke's  wishes  to  the  priest  (one  Claudio  Ghidini),  giving  him  to 
understand  that  they  would  pay  the  price  of  the  picture  to  the  church. 
The  priest  resisted  sturdily,  standing  on  the  rights  of  the  commune 
over  the  work.  Finally,  he  gave  vent  to  his  wrath  in  round  terms, 
freely  e.xpressing  his  opinion  of  the  Duke's  spoliations.  His  words 
were  repeated  by  certain  "  malicious  and  godless  persons  "  to  Francesco, 
who  lodged  a  complaint  with  the  Bishop  of  Reggio,  a  member  of  the 
Coccapani  family.  The  supple  and  obsequious  prelate  cited  the  poor 
priest  to  appear  before  him  at  Reggio,  where  he  kept  him  in  durance 
for  seven  long  months.  The  picture  was  meanwhile  carried  oft"  aniiata 
maiiii  to  Modena,  and  a  copy,  supplied  by  the  serviceable  Jean 
Boulanger,  was  placed  over  the  altar  in  its  stead. 

The  Duke,  however,  with  somewhat  questionable  generosity, 
insisted  that  the  church  should  receive  compensation  for  the  loss  ;  and 
ordered  that  a  sum  of  7,494  Modenese  /ire  he  claimed  from  the 
commune  of  Albinea  should  be  devoted  to  this  purpose.  It  is  clear 
that  he  waived  his  own  rights  to  this  levy,  knowing  very  well  that  the 
commune  would  never  have  discharged  the  debt,  and  equally  clear  that 
the  commune,  for  its  part,  was  most  anxious  to  give  him  the  picture, 
and  free  itself  by  this  convenient  means  from  any  further  pressure  on 
the  subject  of  payments,  hoping,  perhaps,  that  when  the  bargain  was 
once  concluded  there  would  be  no  further  trouble  on  either  side. 

Hie  affair,  however,  was  not  so  easily  disposed  of,  and,  far  from 
resolving  itself  thus  amicably,  the  quarrel  was  prolonged  for  over  a 
century. 

'   Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  log  et  seq. 


THE    ALBINEA    MADONNA 


In  reply  to  the  continued  importunities  of  tlie  priest,  the  commune 
declared  itself  unable  to  discharge  the  debt  in  full,  and  at  last  agreed  to 
pay  an  interest  of  five  per  cent,  on  the  sum  claimed.  Even  this  com- 
promise it  was  very  slow  to  carry  out,  and  no  payments  were  in 
fact  made  until  1671. 

In  this  year  the  church  was  rclniilt,  and  the  new  priest  (a  certain 
Muzzi)  succeeded  in   making  good  his  claim,  and  forced  the  commune 
to    bear    part    of 
the     expense     of 
the  work. 

Various  docu- 
ments show  that 
he  then  proceeded 
to  insist  on  dis- 
gorgement of  the 
capital,  intending 
to  invest  the 
money,  and  thus 
provide  an  income 
for     the     church,  chlrch  of  albinea 

which  was  en- 
tirely without  possessions.  The  commune,  protesting  and  declaring  its 
inability  to  hand  over  the  lump  sum,  nevertheless  averted  law-suits 
and  excommunications,  first  by  finding  the  money  for  a  silver  pyx 
and  monstrance,  then  by  providing  a  thousand  Modenese  lire  for 
the  purchase  of  a  Madonna  of  the  Rosary,  and  a  throne  upon 
which  to  carry  her  in  processions  ;  finally,  in  16S7,  worn  out  by  the 
threats  and  assaults  of  the  stubborn  priest,  it  made  up  its  mind  to 
the  heroic  measure  of  levying  a  tax  upon  all  its  agricultural  posses- 
sions. A  sum  of  6,460  Modenese  lire  was  thus  painfully  amassed. 
In  1 69 1,  however,  a  band  of  German  soldiers  was  billetetl  upon 
the  district,  and  to  meet  this  expense,  the  commune  had  recourse  to 
their  little  hoard,  after  the  dissipation  of  which  they  made  no  further 
attempt  to  pay  either  principal  or  interest. 

Again    there    were    wrathful    denunciations    from    the    priest,   and 


134  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

suddenly  the  commune  was  formally  excommunicated  !  In  vain  they 
petitioned  the  Pope  for  moral  and  material  absolution  in  1 706.  The 
answer  from  Rome  was  that  "the  Bishop  of  Reggio  would  only  grant 
absolution  when  the  debt  had  been  discharged  in  full  " ! 

This,  of  course,  had  greatly  increased,  each  successive  priest  having 
added  the  unpaid  interest  to  the  principal.  Repugnant  as  it  was  to 
the  representatives  to  continue  living  under  the  ban,  they  could  find 
no  means  of  salvation.  In  1732  they  at  last  bethought  themselves  of 
a  certain  claim  the  community  had  against  the  Modenese  tribunal  for 
lodging  furnished,  and  payments  made  on  its  behalf  A  part  of  this 
claim  they  decided  to  make  over  to  the  church,  on  condition  that 
full  absolnlioii  should  he  assured  them.  They  thus  made  a  practical 
retort  to  the  trick  Francesco  I.  had  played  them  after  carrying  off  the 
picture.  The  arch-priest  accepted  the  terms  "  with  the  approval  of  his 
superiors,"  and  Rinaldo  d'Este  gave  orders  for  the  necessary  payments. 
The  church,  however,  was  fated  to  lose  on  this  occasion  !  The  whole 
negotiation  was  broken  off  by  a  sudden  call  to  arms,  and  the  wars  in 
which  Modena  was  shortly  afterwards  involved.  Once  more  the  arch- 
priest  returned  to  the  charge,  demanding  from  the  commune,  which 
still  groaned  under  the  Papal  ban,  a  greatly  increased  sum  "  forasmuch 
as  they  had  misapplied  church  funds." 

How  was  this  interminable  wrangle  at  last  settled  ? 

Among  the  papers  we  have  examined  we  find  a  petition  to  the 
executive  of  the  Modenese  tribunal,  in  which  the  arch-priest  "appeals 
with  all  humility  to  their  Christian  piety,  begging  them  to  give  orders 
that  the  claims  of  the  church  be  satisfied  without  further  delay,  he, 
their  suppliant,  desiring  to  repair  it,  and  pay  various  unavoidable 
debts  that  had  been  incurred  in  its  maintenance,  the  said  church  being 
destitute  of  all  property  and  revenue  save  such  as  is  derived  from 
charity." 

When  this  appeal  also  proved  fruitless,  humility  was  changed  to 
anger.  In  a  document  of  1741,  the  sum,  which  has  now  risen  to  15.S27 
Modenese  lire,  is  demanded  in  such  terms  as  these  :  "  no  laws,  human 
nor  divine,  'can  annul  the  rights  of  the  poor  church,  betrayed  and 
assassinated  by  her  own  children."     The   community  (this   is  the   final 


THE    ALBINEA    MADONNA  135 

cry  !)  "  will  never  receive  absolution  at  the  tribunal  of  God  !  "  But  the 
great  absolver  and  liberator  in  this  case  was  the  French  Revolution  ! 

In  some  of  the  papers  from  which  we  have  quoted,  Correggio's 
picture  is  described  as  The  Birth  of  the  Virgin.  This  has  induced 
some  writers  to  reject  the  general  testimony  as  to  the  subject  of  the 
work,  which  declares  it  to  have  been  a  I'irgiii  and  Child  beticccn  St. 
Litcy  and  the  Jl/agdaien.  Meyer,  among  others,  says  the  picture  was 
known  ever  since  1647  as  a  Birth  of  the  Virgin,  and  that  not  even 
a  copy  has  survived.^ 

It  must  now  be  pointed  out  that  the  documents  which  give  this 
designation  to  the  work  also  follow  the  story  of  the  quarrel  between  the 
arch-priest,  the  Duke,  and  the  community  down  to  the  year  1647,  ^i"tl 
that  they  themselves  are  of  considerably  later  date.  The  picture  was, 
in  fact,  a  Madonna  and  Child  between  St.  Lucy  and  the  Magdalen. 
The  error  of  the  later  description  arose,  no  doubt,  from  the  fact  that 
the  church  was  dedicated  to  the  Birth  of  the  Virgin.  The  name  of 
the  temple  was  confused  with  the  subject  of  the  painting. 

We  think  it  will  be  possible  to  establish  this  by  recent  and  valuable 
discoveries.  During  the  war  which  Ottavio  Farnese  made  upon  the 
Duke  of  Ferrara  in  1557  at  the  instigation  of  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  he 
besieged  and  took  many  of  the  Reggian  fortresses.  Canossa  fell  on 
October  11,  Borzano  on  November  15,  Scandiano  and  Dinazzano  on 
the  following  day.  On  December  4  he  went  to  the  Ouattro  Castella, 
whence  he  threatened  Albinea,  which  he  took  on  December  30,  after 
an  obstinate  battle,  in  which  over  a  thousand  combatants  were  left  on 
the  field.  Every  victory  was  in  those  days  followed  up  by  fire  and 
pillage,  and  the  men  of  Albinea,  knowing  they  could  not  hold  out  much 
longer,  had  made  a  determined  effort  to  save  their  most  precious  posses- 
sions. Three  days  before  Farnese's  entry,  they  conveyed  their  picture 
to  Reggio,  to  be  preserved  till  safer  times.  "On  the  twenty-seventh  day," 
says  a  contemporary  chronicle,  "  the  Chapter  of  San  Prospero  and  the 
Beatines  of  San  Rocco  went  to  meet  the  deputation  from  Albinea,  who 

1  Meyer,  pp.  87  and  109.  See  also  Pungileoni,  i.  pp.  70,  71,  and  94  ;  ii.  pp.  108-1 13. 
Nuovo  diario  sacro  istoriografo  reggiaiw,  p.  106.  Reggio,  1825.  Paolo  Ottavi,  Due 
quadri  del  Correggio  (Atti  e  memoiie  dcile  R.  R.  Deputazioni  di  storia  patria  modenesi  e 
parmens!,  i.  p.  112.      Modena,  1863).     Martini,  pp.  62,  7o,and  Bigi,  p.  51,  etc. 


136 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


brought  their  Jlladonna  to  San  Rocco."  ^  Now  this  description  of  the 
picture  evidently  implies  that  the  Virgin  was  the  dominant  figure  of 
the  composition,  and  we  cannot  suppose  her  to  have  played  the  sub- 
ordinate part  she  necessarily  does  in  pictures  representing  the  episode 
of  her  birth. 

Subsequent     events     prove     that     the     Madonna     returned     in 

safety     to     her 

altar.  We  know 
that  Francesco  I. 
found  her  there, 
and  that  he  re- 
moved her,  sub- 
stituting Boulan- 
ger'scopy.  Now 
this  copy  was 
fixed  into  the 
florid  baroque 
stucco  ornament 
with  which  the 
church  was  de- 
corated at  its 
restoration,  and 
has  remained 
there  ever  since, 
In  the  Brcra,  Milan.  as  various  docu- 

ments  bear  wit- 
ness.      It    still    e.xists,    though    in    a    ruinous    condition. 

The  Virgin  sits  under  a  clump  of  trees,  supporting  the  Child 
in  her  arms.  To  the  right  stands  St.  Lucy,  her  eyes  on  a  plate  in  one 
hand,  in  the  other  the  palm  of  martyrdom.  On  the  opposite  side  is 
St.  Mary  Magdalen,  the  box  of  ointment  in  her  right  hand,  her  left 
hand  upon  her  breast.  The  background  represents  a  hill,  beyond 
which  lies  a  wide  plain. 

1  I.  Malaguzzi,  Aktme  cose  tratte  dai  diari  reggiani  di  Alfonso  Visdomtni  (Reggio,  1881. 
Per  nozze  Fornaciari,  Vakntini).     We  owe  this  information  to  Professor  N.  Campanini. 


THE   ALBINEA    MADONNA  137 

The  picture  is  unmistakably  a  copy  after  Correggio.  Even  Meyer 
was  obliged  to  admit  this,  though  he  beheved  the  original  altar-piece 
to  have  represented  the  birth  of  the  Virgin.  The  facial  types,  the 
folds  of  the  draperies,  the  character  of  the  composition,  the  attitudes, 
the  landscape,  all  point  to  a  work  executed  by  Correggio  at  the  same 
period  in  which  he  painted  the  Repose  in  Es^ypt  in  the  Uffizi,  and 
the  Ziiigarclla  of 
the  Naples  Museum. 
Two  other  copies  of 
the  work  are  still 
extant  :  one  in  the 
Campidoglio  Gal- 
lery at  Rome,  the 
other  in  the  Brera 
at  Milan. ^  In  the 
latter,  the  original 
signature  on  a  stone 
at  St.  Lucy's  feet  is 
reproduced:  Anton- 

IVS        L.\ETVS        FACI- 

EBAT.  That  Cor- 
reggio habitually 
latinised  his  name 
in  this  fashion  we 
know  from  docu- 
ments    to     which      we  Co ,  •    nfler  Corrc-"io      In  the  Pai ma  Caller  • 

shall  refer  later  on. 

The  reproduction  of  this  signature  caused  certain  writers  to  uphokl 
the  copy  as  the  original.  Otto  Miindler  among  others  expressed  this 
opinion,  though  it  ran  directly  counter  to  the  reasonable  and  unanimous 
conclusions  of  Morclli,  Frizzoni,  and  Meyer." 


'  .\d.  Venturi,  La  Gallcria  del  Cn/N/iidog/iii,  p.  39.  Rome,  1890.  G.  B.  Ventui 
mentions  another  copy  in  his  own  possession,  of  whicli  he  gives  a  reproduction.  See  hi 
Storia  di  Scandiaiw,  pp.  129-130.     Modena,  1882. 

2  Correggio,  p.  87. 


138  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

The  original  has  disappeared  entirely,  like  the  original  of  the 
Young  Man  fleeing  from  the  Captors  of  Christ.  The  latter  was  in  the 
Barberini  Gallery  in  the  seventeenth  century,  and  went  from  thence  to 
England,  where  we  lose  all  trace  of  its  subsequent  history.' 

Several  copies  of  this,  as  of  the  Albinea  picture,  are  still  extant, 
however,  and  more  than  suffice  to  exclude  it  from  the  list  of  Correggio's 
juvenile  works. - 

It  is  strange  that  the  free  and  vigorous  modelling  of  the  nude  in 
this  picture,  the  type  and  expression  of  the  young  man's  face,  the  broad 
and  flowing  treatment  of  the  folds  in  his  crimson  mantle,  the  dramatic 
animation  of  the  soldier's  figure,  and  the  unconventional  nature  of  the 
whole  composition  should  not  have  prevented  a  sound  critic  like  Meyer 
from  describing  it  as  a  work  of  about  the  year  1512.  It  cannot  have 
been  painted  before  15 18,  and  was  probably  of  later  date. 

St.  Mark  the  Evangelist  introduces  the  following  episode  in  his 
account  of  the  capture  of  Christ  :  "  And  there  followed  him  a  certain 
young  man,  having  a  linen  cloth  cast  about  his  naked  body  ;  and  the 
young  men  laid  hold  on  him  :  and  he  left  the  linen  cloth,  and  fled  from 
them  naked."  This  episode  furnishes  the  motive  of  the  main  group. 
In  the  background,  Judas  approaches  the  Saviour  and  kisses  him,  and 
St.  Peter  cuts  off  Malchus'  ear. 

The  first  part  of  our  study  may  fittingly  be  brought  to  a  close 
here.  At  this  point  in  his  career  Correggio  changed  his  field  of 
action,  and,  strong  in  knowledge  and  experience,  triumphantly  as- 
serted his  conquest  of  a  purely  individual  style.  His  manner  of  life, 
however,  was  unchanged.  It  was  a  life  dedicated  to  work  and  medi- 
tation, without  dramatic  incidents,  and  free  from  moral  upheavals. 
He  was  good  and  honest,  and  lived  modestly  among  his  kindred, 
absorbed    in  his  art.       No  audacious,   heroic,  or  evil  enterprises,   no 

1  Mengs,  ii.  p.  175.  Tirabosclii,  vi.  p.  284.  Lanzi,  ('/.  c/ Av.  c//.  I'ungileoni,  i.  p.  25  ; 
ii.  p.  39.     Meyer,  p.  89. 

2  Some  of  these  are  mentioned  by  Meyer,  pp.  394  and  419.  There  is  one  in  the 
Parma  Gallery  (No.  524),  wliich  was  acquired  with  the  Rosa-Prati  Collection.  One, 
attributed  to  Lelio  Orsi,  was  in  the  Roumegous  Collection.  (See  the  catalogue  printed 
at  Parma  in  1804.)  Another  was  presented  to  the  Academy  of  Arts  of  that  city  in  1855 
as  a  work  of  the  Bolognese  school.     MSS.  Mimites  of  ilic  Academy,  vi.  p.  87. 


CORRROGIO    LEAVES    HIS    NATIVE    CTTV  139 

violent  and  unlawful  passion,  no  catastrophes  such  as  we  read  of  in 
the  biographies  of  Michelangelo  and  Benvenuto  Cellini,  for  instance, 
throw  a  ray  of  light,  though  but  a  sinister  one,  upon  his  path. 

This  redounds  indeed  to  Correggio's  honour.  But  his  very  virtues 
increase  the  difficulties  of  the  biographer,  who  has  to  weave  the  web 
of  his  history,  and  inquire  into  his  psychological  structure  without 
the  help  of  anecdote  and  episode. 


Mr.   L.   MunJ,  Londo 


II 

CORREGGIO   AT  PARMA 


KESCO    IN    SAN    GIOVANNI 


the  Parma  Gallery 


THE  TEMl'I.E  i 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    CAMERA    DI    SAN    PAOLO 

PARMA — ARTISTS     WHO     FLOURISHED     THERE     BEFORE     CORREGGIO — CORREGGIO     AT 

PARMA — THE   CONVENT   OF   SAN    PAOLO    AND  THE   ROOM    DECORATED   BY  CORREGGIO 

GIOVANNI    PIACENZA    AND    SCIPIONE    MONTINO—"  DIANA " "THE    MARRIAGE    OF    ST. 

CATHERINE" — THE  "MADONNA  SUCKLING  THE  CHILD"  (kNOWN  AS  THE  "MADONNA 
DEL  LATTe"),  "the  MADONNA  WITH  THE  BASKET"  ("MADONNA  DELLA  CESTa"), 
AND    THE    "  VIRGIN    ADORING    THE    INFANT    CHRIST." 


AFTER  Bologna,  Parma  is 
the  largest  of  the  cities 
which  rise  along  the 
splendid  highway  constructed 
Ijy  the  Consul  Marcus  Emilius 
Lepidus  between  Rimini  and 
Piacenza. 

Traversed  by  this  artery, 
through  which  the  tide  of  life 
has  always  flowed  strongly,  the 
city  boasts  a  varied  and  animated 
history,  bright  with  many  glorious 
pages. 

When  the  Italian  spirit  awoke 


144  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

from  its  trance,  and  shook  off  the  long  oppression  of  the  eleventh 
century,  our  city  was  the  first  to  produce  an  artist,  who,  thirsting 
for  new  ideals,  turned  away  from  the  meagre  forms  of  the  Byzantine 
tradition,  and  strove  to  render  the  fairer  and  more  genial  conceptions 
of  renascent  art.  This  Benedetto  Antelami,  who  still  awaits  his 
rightful  place  in  the  history  of  art,  was  the  forerunner  of  Nicola  Pisano, 
and  inaugurated  the  new  era  in  Italian  sculpture.^ 

It  was  he  who  built  and  decorated  the  wonderful  baptistery  at 
Parma,  and  adorned  the  facade  of  the  cathedral  at  Borgo  San  Donnino 
with  sculptures. 

Just  as  Antelami  strove  to  put  new  life  into  the  rigid  marble, 
so  did  Fra  Salimbene  seek  to  portray  living  facts  and  persons  in  his 
chronicles  of  the  times.  These  he  informed  with  a  vivacity  unknown 
to  earlier  writers,  whose  records  have  for  the  most  part  to  be  dug  out 
from  a  load  of  barbarous  Latin,  and  tedious  philosophical  digressions. 
In  Fra  Salimbene's  pages,  we  look  on  a  picture  of  the  thirteenth 
century  more  complete  than  any  we  can  reconstruct  from  official 
documents  of  the  period.  The  emergence  of  the  social  spirit  from 
the  dark  dungeon  of  superstition  and  horror,  and  its  return  to 
joy  and  freedom  ;  the  rise  of  the  various  sodalities,  formed  at 
first  to  counterbalance  the  tyranny  of  the  nobility,  but  degen- 
erating after  a  time  into  mere  associations  of  boon-companions 
and  swashbucklers  ;  the  civil  and  religious  feuds,  the  mixture 
of  worldly  subtlety  and  e.xtravagant  mysticism  in  the  intellectual 
life  of  the  day — all  these  things  are  living  realities  for  us  in  F"ra 
Salimbene's  book,  one  of  the  most  curious  and  important  in  our 
literature. 

Simultaneously  with  the  revival  in  art  and  letters,  a  great  scientific 
development  took  place  in  Parma,  whose  schools  produced  students 
like  Giovanni  Buralli,  better  known  as  Fra  Giovanni  of  Parma, 
the  famous  professor  of  the  old  University  of  Paris,  and  Bartolomeo 
of  Parma,  the  author  of  various  astronomical   works,  and  "  one  of  the 

'  Cj.  Vj.  Tosclii  is  the  autlior  of  an  cxccllL-nt  study  on  V>.  Antclami's  sculptures  at  Borgo 
San  Donnino,  in  the  Aychivio  s/oruv  dcllc  arti,  i.  p.  14  f/  si-</.,  but  a  fuller  monograph  is 
much  needed. 


ART    IN    I'ARMA  145 

clearest    and     most     sagacious     intellects    of    Italy   in    the   thirteenth 
century."  ^ 

Painting,  too,  has  a  v^enerable  and  continuous  history  in  Parma, 
tracing  its  origin  to  one  Everardo,  who  laboured  there  in  1068.  From 
this  time  forward,  as  we  know  from  the  wall-paintings  in  the  baptistery 
the  cathedral,  and  various  other  churches,  to  say  nothing  of  con- 
temporary records,  Parma  boasts  a  long  series  of  painters.      It  cannot 


be  said,  however,  that  she  owned  an  individual  school  before  the  time 
of  Correggio.  Her  art  was  not  even  distinguished,  like  that  of 
Bologna,  by  the  predominance  of  a  special  type,  which  in  the  case 
of  the  latter,  culminated  in  the  school  of  Francia.  Parma,  though 
she  owned  many  excellent  painters,  showed  an  over-eclectic  tendency, 

'  Giovanni  Mariotti,  Memorie  e  docuincnti  per  la  storia  dclla  Universita  di  Parma  ncl 
Medioevo.     Parma,  1888. 


146  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

and  this  lack  of  cesthetic  concentration  delayed  the  formation  of  a 
characteristic  style,  and  prevents  her  from  figuring-  prominently  in 
the  early  history  of  art. 

Her  geographical  position  was  perhaps  not  the  least  among  the 
determining  causes  of  this  result.  Ferrarese  and  Bolognese  influences 
reached  her  in  a  somewhat  languid  condition,  contending  as  they  did 
against  Lombard  activity,  and  more  especially  against  the  mediocre 
form  it  had  assumed  in  Cremona  ;  they  were  further  counteracted  by 
the  strong  and  sudden  influx  of  Venetian  tendencies. 

Whereas,  on  the  one  hand,  no  Ferrarese  artist  is  known  to  have 
laboured  in  Parma  during  the  second  half  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
while  Modena  is  represented  by  one  Bartolomco  Roseto,  and  Reggio 
by  one  Giacomo  Antonio,  the  names  of  many  Lombards  are  recorded 
in  her  annals,  among  them  Francesco  Boltraffio,  painter,  Lorenzo, 
engineer,  Antonio  d'Agrate,  sculptor,  all  of  Milan  ;  Antonio  Fasolo, 
engineer,  of  Piacenza  ;  Giacomo  Rovazzi,  of  Borgo  San  Donnino,  and 
Giovanni  of  Pavia,  both  painters. 

But,  as  we  have  said,  the  influence  which  predominated  in  Parma 
until  1490  was  that  of  the  Cremonese  school.  The  Parmesans  had 
an  evident  predilection  for  works  executed  in  Cremona,  or  by  artists 
they  summoned  from  Cremona  to  their  own  city.  So  early  as 
April,  1358,  one  Francesco  Frigeri  of  Parma  ordered  an  Eutouibiueuf 
from  Cremona,  with  figures  carved  in  wood.  This  work  was  long- 
preserved  in  the  crypt  of  Parma  Cathedral.  After  1450  we  find 
Francesco  Tacconi  ^  and  Benedetto  Bcmbo,  the  painters,  Aguccio  and 
Maffeo  Bagarotti,  the  engineers,  Tommaso  Sacchi,  the  carver,  all  of 
Cremona,  established  in  the  city.-  Cremonese,  too,  were  the  artists 
who  decorated  the  castles  of  Parma.  Many  notable  evidences  of  their 
activity  still  remain  to  us,  notably  in  the  fortresses  of  Torchiara  and 
Roccabianca,  built  by  Pier  Maria  Rossi. 

A  few  natives  of  Parma  belonged  indeed  to  the  Ferraro- Bolognese 
school,  but  these  are  either  of  much  later  date,  like  that  Lodovico  who 

1  There  is  a  signed  picture  by  Tacconi  in  the  National  Gallery. 

-  E.  Scarabelli  Zunti,  Doaimcnti  e  meniorie  di  belle  arti  parmigiane.  MSS.  in  the 
Parma  Museum  of  Antiquities. 


ART    IN    PARMA  747 

was  one  of  Francia's  scholars,  or  flourished  in  alien  cities,  like  Gian 
Francesco  Maineri  of  Ferrara.^ 

Jacopo  Loschi,  who,  although  a  mediocre  artist,  flourished  in  Parma 
for  many  years  at  the  head  of  a  large  studio,  had  been  trained  in  the 
school  of  Cremona.  From  him,  and  perhaps  from  Tacconi,  the  elder 
Mazzoli  received  their  first  teaching,  although,  after  the  return  of 
Temperelli  from  Venice,  they  improved  upon  the  forms  and  colour 
thus  acquired. 

Cristoforo  Caselli,  called  Temperelli,  was  undoubtedly  the  best 
artist  who  flourished  in  Parma  before  the  advent  of  Correggio,  and 
among  the  best,  indeed,  of  the  whole  territory.  Born  about  the  middle 
of  the  fifteenth  century,  he  went  to  Venice  before  1488,  to  study  under 
Gian  Bellini,  and  remained  there  for  some  time  after  his  powers  had 
fully  matured.  He  must  have  enjoyed  a  considerable  reputation  in 
Venice,  for  the  Signoria  invited  him  to  collaborate  with  Alvise  Vivarini, 
Lattanzio  da  Rimini,  Vincenzo  da  Treviso,  and  Francesco  Bissolo,  in 
the  decorations  of  the  Hall  of  the  Great  Council.  In  1494  he  was 
still  engaged  on  the  frescoes  of  the  Ducal  Palace  which  perished  in  the 
fire  of  1577,  and  on  other  works  which  added  considerably  to  his  fame, 
so  much  so,  that  he  was  eulogised  in  his  native  city  by  Francesco 
Maria  Grapaldo  in  his  work,  Dc  partibiis  Acdiuvi.  The  deed  by  which 
he  undertook  to  paint  the  Assciiihly  of  the  Quick  and  the  Dead  ^\\o\n's, 
him  to  have  been  in  Parma  in  the  spring  of  1496.  We  do  not,  how- 
ever, believe  that  he  settled  there  at  this  date.  He  returned  to  Venice, 
where  he  remained  some  time  longer,  probably  till  late  in  1498.  It  is 
not  until  the  following  year  that  we  find  him  working  in  Parma,  where 
he  remained  until  his  death  in  152  i. 

Two  other  artists  of  Parma  whose  style  was  formed  in  the  school  of 
Venice  were  Giovanni  Pietro  Zarotti,  known  only  by  a  single  picture 
of  the  year  1496,  and  Josafat  Araldi,  whose  name  occurs  in  two  or 
three  documents  before  1520,  and  who  is  further  represented  by  a 
most  curious  picture. 

Temperelli,  returning  from  Venice  fresh  from  the  study  of  Bellini 
and  his  school,  no  doubt  exercised  some  influence  upon  Alessandro 
1  iVd.  Venturi,  G.  F.  dc  Maineri  {Arc/iiv.  storic.  dell'  arte,  i.  p.  88.) 


r48 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


Araldi.  The  latter,  who  flourished  at  Parma  till  1528,  had,  indeed, 
gleaned  something  from  nearly  all  the  famous  masters  of  his  day.  In 
the  ceiling  he  painted  in  the  convent  of  San  Paolo,  he  reproduced 
compositions  by  Raphael,  Francia,  Costa,  and  others,  with  very  slight 
\'ariations,  and  in  the  chapel  of  St.  Catherine  he  imitated  Pinturicchio. 

The  Parma  Gallery 
possesses  a  large  copy 
of  Leonardo's  Last 
Supper  by  him.  He 
sought  inspiration 
from  many  sources, 
endeavouring,  with 
all  possible  zeal  and 
good-will,  to  assimil- 
ate the  new  discover- 
ies of  art,  and  keep 
in  touch  with  the 
spirit  of  the  times. 

Yet,  although  these 
artists  and  others  of 
less  importance  did 
all  in  their  power  to 
maintain  the  dignity 
of  Parma,  the  city 
was  dissatisfied.  Her 
sense  of  humiliation 
was  keen  when  she 
saw  herself  reduced  to 

Formerly  in  the  Consorzio  at  Parma.  the     praCtlce    of    fomiS 

already  obsolete. 
Stimulated  by  the  consciousness  of  her  mediocre  position  in  this  respect, 
she  had  an  ardent  desire  for  a  loftier  artistic  ideal,  and  longed  to  find 
herself  on  the  same  level  as  the  neighbouring  cities,  Bologna,  Ferrara, 
and  Mantua.  Parma's  attitude  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century 
was  one  of  appeal  and  invocation.      Eager  for  some  new  development, 


ART    IN    PARMA 


she  stretched  out  inviting-  hands,  summoning  artists  within  her  walls 
or  demanding  their  works.  Francia  and  Gian  Battista  Cima  re- 
sponded  to   her  call   from    Bologna   and  Venice   respectively,  bringing 


cesco  da  Cotignola  also  answered  the  summons  in  person  ;  but  the  two 
former  returned  at  once  to  their  own  cities  and  workshops,  and  the 
two  latter  she  herself  had  no  desire  to  keep,  finding  them  little  superior 
to  her  own  masters.  A  brief  visit  of  Leonardo's  is  recorded  in 
1514,  but  he 
never  worked 
in  the  city, 
and  historians, 
Jansen  and 
M  i  1  a  n  e  s  i 
among  the 
number,  are 
mistaken  in 
supposing 
S  o  d  o  m  a  to 
have  been 
there  in  1518.^ 
It  is  great- 
ly to  the  credit 
of  Parma  that 

her      efforts     to  s^.  Catherine   uekoke   the   uoctuks,  by  akaldi. 

win     an     hon-  f'-"^"  ="  ^"'"^■ 

ourable    place 

for    herself    in     the    history    of    the    Renaissance    emanated    entirely 

from    her    citizens.       Her   dignity   was    not   derived    from  a   powerful 

family  like  the   Bentivogli,  the   Estensi,  or   the   Gonzaghi,    who   sought 

'  The  error  arose  from  a  confusion  between  the  famous  Vercellian  and  a  liunible 
Parmesan  artist  of  the  same  name,  Giovanni  Antonio  Bazzi,  who  is  mentioned  in  con- 
temporary documents  as  a  citizen  of  Parma,  where  he  was  living  in  1511  and  in  1521, 
whereas  Sodoma  is  known  to  have  been  elsewhere  at  those  dates.  See  G.  PVizzoni,  Arte 
italia?ia  del  Rinascimento,  p.  151.  G.  Campori,  Gli  artisti  iialiani  e  itranicri  lugli  stati 
estensi,  p.  58.     E.  Scarabelli  Zunti,  MSS.  already  quoted. 


ISO  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

an  added  lustre  for  their  famous  houses  in  the  patronage  of  art  and 
letters,  but  from  her  commune,  her  clergy,  her  rehgious  bodies, 
and  her  burghers.  This  is  the  more  remarkable  in  view  of  the  fre- 
quent changes  in  her  internal  polity,  and  the  absence  of  sustained  and 
equable  rule.  Forced  to  rely  on  her  own  resources,  she  was  at  the 
height  of  artistic  glory  when  it  had  begun  to  wane  in  all  the  neighbour- 
ing states. 

In  1499  Parma  fell  into  the  hands  of  Louis  XII.;  it  passed, 
however,  to  Julius  II.  in  consequence  of  the  league  between  the  Pope 
and  the  Emperor  Maximilian.  On  the  death  of  Julius  the  city  became 
subject  to  Milan,  and  afterwards  (15 13)  to  Leo  X.,  from  whom  it  was 
wrested  by  Francis  I.  The  Pope,  assisted  by  the  Emperor  Charles 
v.,  recovered  it  in  1521,  and  appointed  Francesco  Guicciardini 
governor.  After  an  interval  of  some  six  years,  the  Connetable  de 
Bourbon  swooped  down  upon  it  with  his  ferocious  soldiery.  The 
occupation  was  happily  a  brief  one.  Clement  \TI.  reconquered  it,  and 
it  remained  a  papal  appanage  until  Pope  Paul  III.  (Farnese)  made  it 
a  feoff  of  his  own  family. 

No  stable  form  of  government  was  established,  however,  until 
1545,  and  Machiavelli  tells  us  that  its  provisional  rulers,  uncertain  of 
their  tenure,  were  rather  inclined  to  despoil  than  to  enrich  the  city. 
Her  citizens,  however,  faithful  to  their  birthplace,  endeavoured  to 
beautify  it  even  in  the  thick  of  political  reverses.  They  built  the  two 
splendid  churches  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista  and  Santa  Maria  della 
Steccata,  the  architects  of  which  were  Bernardino  and  his  son  Giovanni 
Francesco,  of  Torchiara  ;  they  restored  the  facade  of  San  Sepolcro, 
rebuilt  the  Oratory  of  the  Conception  in  the  Franciscan  church, 
enlarged  the  convents  of  San  Giovanni  and  San  Paolo,  and  raised  a 
forest  of  scaffolding  around  the  walls  and  under  the  domes  of  the 
growing  structures  to  enable  painters  and  sculptors  to  adorn  the  whole 
with  ornament  and  figures. 

It  was  at  the  moment  when  the  aesthetic  enthusiasm  was  at  its 
height  that  Correggio  came,  like  some  beneficent  spirit,  to  Parma. 
Little  reason  indeed  is  there  to  lament  the  fact  that  he  never  visited 
Rome   or  any  other  great  city  !      Parma,   rising  in  smiling  tranquillity 


CORREGGIO   AT    FARAFA 


upon  her  fertile  plains,  girdled  by  castles  and  villages,  and  looking  out 
upon  the  vaporous  line  of  hills  from  which  the  streams  which  give 
her  water  descend  into  the  champaign,  offered  our  painter  not  only 
the  serenity  that  suited  his  temperament,  but  a  vaster  field  of 
activity  than  had 
ever  been  allot- 
ted to  any  artist. 
There  were  al- 
tar-pieces to  be 
painted,  rooms 
to  be  decorated  ; 
the  joyous  fan- 
cies of  his  genius 
were  to  be  allow- 
ed ample  scope 
in  the  decoration 
of  two  stately 
cupolas.  What 
greater  oppor- 
tunities had 
Michel  angelo 
and  Raphael  at 
Rome,  Leonardo 
at  Milan,  or 
Titian  at  Venice? 
Biographers 
differ    as  to  the 

exact     date    when  hie   axm^uahu-,-,   wn-..    s,-,  CAmmiNE    a:.u    m.   si, a, ha;.,   AAriiLi-    ... 

Correggio  was  in    tl,e    Parma    Gallery. 

summoned     to 

Parma.  Some  say  1 5 iS,  others  15  19.  Some,  again,  declare  that  the  in- 
vitation came  from  the  Benedictines  of  .San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  others 
that  it  was  given  by  Giovanna  Piacenza,  the  abbess  of  .San  Paolo.^ 


1  I'ungileoni,  i.  p.  76  e/  ^t^. 
Rondani,  Cc/me  visse  il  Correggi 


Meyer,   p. 
p.  45,  etc. 


Martini,  p.  73.      Richter,  p.  15  el  seq. 


'52 


ANTONIO    DA   CORRliGClIO 


We  have  no  positive  evidence  on  either  point ;  but  history  and 
a  critical  examination  of  the  master's  work  seem  aHke  to  lead  to  the 
conclusion  that  Correggio  came  to  Parma  in  1518,  to  work  in  the 
convent  of  San  Paolo. 

He  was  in  his  native  city  in  the  spring  of  151S.  He  appears  as 
witness    to    a    deed    in    January   of   that  year,  and    acted    as   sponsor 

to  an  infant  girl  on 
March  i  ~}  Through- 
out the  remaining 
months  we  find  no 
mention  of   him. 

Where  was  he  ? 
W'hat  was  he  doing  at 
this  time  ? 

The  first  payments 
received  by  Correggio 
for  his  frescoes  in  the 
church  and  monastery 
of  San  Giovanni  Evan- 
gclista  were  made  in 
1520  ;  they  continued 
at  intervals  till  1524. 
Now  a  comparison  of 
the  facial  types,  the 
chords  of  colour,  the 
details    of   form,    and, 

In  Ihe  Lille  Museum.  aboVC     all,     thc      techul- 

cal  treatment,  in  the 
surviving  frescoes  of  San  Giovanni  and  of  San  Paolo,  prove  most 
conclusively  that  the  latter  were  executed  first.  We  know  that 
Allegri  had  many  interests  in  1519  in  his  native  place,  where  he 
certainly  spent  the  greater  part  of  the  year  ;  we  are  therefore 
inclined  to  think  that  he  painted  the  frescoes  in  the  Camera  di 
San   Paolo  between  April  and  December,  15 18;  that   he   returned  to 

'    Punyileoni,  ii.  pp.  115-116. 


THE   (^ONVKNT   Ol'   SAN    PAOLO 


'S3 


Correggio  after  completing  the  work,  and  remained  there  for  a  whole 
year,  and  that  in  1520  he  came  back  to  Parma  at  the  invitation  of 
the  Benedictines.  We  know  indeed  that  he  was  at  Correggio  on 
January  18,  15 19,  where  he  acted  as  witness  to  the  deed  of  settle- 
ment by  which  the  dowry  of  Oliva  Chierici  was  conveyed  to  F"rancesco 
Aromani,  his  maternal  uncle;  a  fortnight  later  he  received  a  donation 
from  the  same  uncle  of  a  house  and  furniture,  in  the  Borgo  Vecchio, 
with  a  few  acres  of  land  ; 
in  September  he  was  pre- 
sent at  the  drawing  up  of 
two  deeds  by  the  notary 
Francesco  Alfonso  Bottoni ; 
finally,  he  was  at  Correggio, 
as  we  know,  in  October, 
when  the  archpriest  took  his 
receipt  for  payment  of  all 
charges  connected  with  the 
altar-piece  he  had  painted 
for  the  church  of  xAlbinea.^ 
These  various  evidences  all 
favour  the  conjecture  that 
Allegri  spent  the  greater  part 
of  the  year  15 18  at  Parma, 
painting  in  the  convent  oi 
San   Paolo,  and  all   the   fol-  cloister  of  the  convent  of  san  .aolo,  iakma. 

lowing    year    in    Correggio, 

awaiting  fresh  commissions.  Father  Affo  and  Martini  are  of  opinion 
that  the  frescoes  were  painted  in  15 18,  because  the  Abbess  Giovanna's 
health  gave  way  in  1519,  and  she  was  never  able  to  leave  her  bedroom, 
where  all  convocations  of  the  sisterhood  were  held,  instead  of  in  the 
choir,  or  other  parts  of  the  convent.  "  It  is  therefore  highly  probable," 
says   Affo,  "that  the  frescoes  were  completed  before  this."  - 

•   Pungileoni,  ii.  pp.  109,  no,  127,  and  146. 

"  Ireneo  Affo,  Ragionarncnti  sopra  una  stanza  dipinta  da  Antonio  Allegri  da  Correggio 
nel  monastero  di  San  Paolo  in  Parma,  pp.  56-57.      Parma,  1794.     Martini,  p.  76. 

X 


154  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

The  argument  is  far  from  conclusive,  for  the  abbess  may  very 
well  have  been  lodged  in  another  part  of  the  convent,  or  she  may 
have  kept  her  bed  in  the  adjoining  room,  which  Araldi  had  decorated 
in  I  5  14.     The  facts  we  have  pointed  out  are  more  convincing. 

That  Allegri  was  first  summoned  to  Parma  for  the  purpose  of 
painting  these  frescoes  seems  to  us  highly  probable  in  view  of  the 
relations  subsisting  between  the  city  of  Correggio  and  the  Cavaliere 
Scipione  Montino  della  Rosa.  This  personage,  "a  very  gallant 
gentleman  and  lover  of  the  arts,"  was  the  abbess's  brother-in-law,  and 
the  administrator  of  her  aftairs.  She  herself  also  had  acquaintances 
in  Correggio. 

Donna  Giovanna  Piacenza,  the  daughter  of  one  Marco,  a  nobleman 
of  Parma,  and  of  Agnese  Bergonzi,  was  appointed  abbess  of  the 
convent  upon  the  death  of  her  aunt,  Orsina  Bergonzi,  April  25, 
1507.  She  inaugurated  her  reign  by  depriving  the  Garimberti 
of  the  administration  of  the  possessions  Orsina  had  confided  to 
their  charge,  and  placing  it  in  the  hands  of  the  Cavaliere  Scipione. 
Her  action  in  this  matter  gave  rise  to  the  most  atrocious  contest, 
soon  taking  the  form  of  bloody  personal  encounters,  in  one  of 
which  a  member  of  the  Garimberti  family  was  slain  by  Scipione.  The 
convent  suffered  many  indignities  in  consequence  of  these  scandalous 
proceedings.  The  ministers  of  justice,  believing  Scipione  to  be  in 
hiding  there,  insisted  on  a  rigorous  search  of  the  building.  Nor  was 
this  the  last  of  the  matter.  A  contemporary  chronicler  describes 
another  domiciliary  visit  in  15 16,  when  the  governor  of  the  city, 
Francesco  Torelli,  forced  the  convent  gates  in  the  dead  of  the  night, 
to  the  great  terror  and  confusion  of  the  startled  nuns. 

Now  this  Scipione,  the  kinsman  2iX\6.  protdgd  of  Giovanna  Piacenza, 
was,  of  all  the  citizens  of  Parma,  the  one  whose  relations  with  Cor- 
reggio were  then  and  afterwards  most  intimate  and  constant.  He, 
as  administrator  of  the  abbess's  affairs,  commissioned  the  painter  to 
decorate  her  room,  and,  as  one  of  the  wardens  of  the  cathedral, 
entrusted  him  with  the  frescoes  of  the  dome  and  apse.  When  the 
painter  died,  leaving  some  drawings  he  was  engaged  on  for  the  Duke 
of  Mantua    unfinished,    the    duke    gave    orders    that    they    should   be 


THE   CONVENT   OF   SAN    I'AOLO  i55 

inquired  for  at  Scipione's   house,   a  significant  proof  of  the  intimacy 
between  the  two. 

Pungileoni  discovered  that  in  1502  Nicolo  da  Correggio  appointed 
his  procurator,  Bartolomeo  Alontino,  apostolic  prothonotary,  and  one 
of  the  witnesses  to  the  renunciation  of  patronage  made  by  the  house 
of  Correggio  in  the  church  of  Sant'  Antonio  at  Parma.  From  the 
baptismal  registers  of  the  city  we  learn  that  several  of  the  Correggeschi 
and  Montini,  Scipione  among  the  number,  acted  as  sponsors  to 
children  of  the  house  of  Fontanelli,  to  one  of  whom  the  Abbess 
Giovanna  Piacenza  appears  as  godmother  on  September  16,  1511.^ 
The  intimate  relations  maintained  by  Scipione  and  the  abbess  with 
persons  in  Correggio,  and  their  frequent  visits  to  the  city  just  at  the 
time  when  Allegri's  youthful  genius  was  manifesting  its  power,  make 
it  more  than  probable  that  to  them  the  artist  owed  his  summons  to 
Parma.  The  Benedictines,  again,  no  doubt  invited  him  to  decorate 
their  church    after  seeing  the  frescoes  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo. 

Throughout  the  first  two  thirds  of  the  si.xteenth  century,  life  in  an 
Italian  convent  had  none  of  that  austerity  afterwards  enforced  by  the 
Council  of  Trent,  nor  of  the  stern  asceticism  of  later  times.  The 
frequency  with  which  the  blooming  daughters  of  great  houses  were 
consigned  to  these  retreats  had  resulted  in  the  bringing  together  of 
clamorous  bands  of  young  women,  more  disposed  for  the  pleasures  of 
life  than  for  mortification  and  mystic  reverie.  Their  cells,  far  from 
being  silent  and  squalid,  were  adorned  with  the  thousand  objects  fur- 
nished by  Renaissance  art,  and  gay  with  flowers,  sunshine,  and  the 
sounds  of  music  and  song.  Love,  no  unknown  visitant  among  them, 
was  the  cause  of  much  sentimental  depression  and  many  lively  feuds. 
The  sisters  lingered  at  the  gratings,  diverting  themselves  w^ith  gossip 
and  chatter,  receiving  surreptitious  gifts  and  messages  from  without ; 
returning  to  their  rooms  to  indulge  their  emotion,  as  they  scanned  some 
amorous  sonnet,  furtively  hidden  in  their  bosoms.  But  such  moments 
of  solitary  meditation  were  brief!  Presently  the  pensive  fair  one  would 
be  summoned  to  take  part  in  some  fresh  conversation.     Visitors  came 

1  Op.  (it.  i.  p.  75  ;  ii.  p.  115.  It  must  also  be  borne  in  mind  that  Oliva  Chicrici,  wife 
of  Francesco  Aromani,  Correggio's  maternal  uncle,  was  a  native  of  Parma. 


iS6  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

and  went  perpetually  :  fashionable  ladies,  elegant  abb(fs,  the  music- 
master,  a  band  of  foreign  nobles  making  an  inspection  of  the  works 
of  art  in  all  the  religious  houses  of  the  city.  The  dull  and  rigorous 
silence  of  the  ascetic  was  unknown.  From  the  various  cells  came 
the  sounds  of  the  harpsichord,  or  the  lilt  of  gay  madrigals.  In  the 
cloisters  there  was  a  perpetual  buzz  of  argument,  scandal,  and  laughter 
provoked  by  some  outburst  of  jealousy,  some  affront,  some  piquant 
anecdote. 

The  world  they  left  did  not  forget  them.  Relatives,  friends,  and 
admirers  loaded  them  with  presents,  cosdy  stuffs,  perfumed  gloves, 
trinkets,  sweetmeats,  the  works  of  the  poets  most  in  vogue.  Lovers 
as  fervent  as  any  who  praised  the  ladies  of  the  outside  world  lauded 
their  charms.  And  when  passion  agitated  their  hearts,  it  was  whispered 
that  they  did  not  always  prove  severe. 

The  reader  who  supposes  the  above  sketch  to  be  overdrawn  is 
referred  to  various  documents  which  have  come  to  light  dealing  with 
monastic  life  in  Italy  during  the  sixteenth  century. ^  The  nature  and 
scope  of  the  present  work  forbid  us  to  dwell  on  the  frivolous  or 
scandalous  proceedings  which  necessitated  the  intervention  of  the 
ecclesiastical  and  political  authorities  from  time  to  time,  with  certain 
stereotyped  results.  An  inquiry  was  held,  commissioners  of  sur- 
veillance were  appointed,  the  most  disorderly  and  contumacious  of 
the  nuns  were  punished,  the  whole  convent  was  laid  under  severe 
discipline  for  a  month.  Then  there  was  a  relaxation  of  the  severity, 
and  the  culprits  returned  with  new  zest  to  their  life  of  riotous  merri- 
ment. 

The  convent  of  San  Paolo  at  Parma  was  a  typical  community 
of  the  class  we  have  described,  devoted  to  the  arts,  accessible  to  all 
the  pagan  seductions  of  the  Renaissance,  eager  to  participate  in  all  the 
varied  life  of  the  day. 

We  have  seen  that  the  nuns  were  on  two  occasions  surprised 
by    a    search-party,   on    suspicion    of   harbouring  a    gallant    cavalier! 

'  ]'ita  dclla  Afadrc  Filice  Rasponi.  Bologna,  i'SS3.  A.  IJorgognoni,  Studi  di 
ktteraiura  stoiica,  i).  263  c/ ^o/.  Bologna,  1891.  Arvede  Barine,  Portrails  di:  femmcs. 
Paris,  1894. 


THE    CONVENT    OK    SAN    PAOLO  157 

Among  the  petitions  addressed  to  Julius  II.  and  Leo  X.  while  Parma 
was  under  Papal  rule,  was  one  praying  that  the  nuns  of  the  city  should 
be  compelled  to  observe  their  vows  of  seclusion,  and  to  amend  their 
lax  and  disorderly  manner  of  life.  Discipline  was  accordingly  enforced 
in  the  case  of  some  of  the  convents,  but  San  Paolo  remained  exempt  ; 
and  in  1524  the  community  again  petitioned  Clement  VII.  for  a 
decree  ordering  the  claustration  of  nuns.  The  sisters  of  San  Paolo 
resisted  and  were  far  from  amenable  ;  Monsignor  Guidiccioni  and 
other  persons  of  importance  were  obliged  to  exert  themselves  to  the 
utmost  to  persuade  them  into  at  least  a  semblance  of  obedience,  and 
thus  avoid  a  public  scandal.  They  would  not,  however,  abate 
anything  of  the  privileges  enjoyed  by  their  abbess,  Donna  Giovanna 
Piacenza.  It  was  agreed  that  future  abbesses  should  be  elected  and 
re-elected  year  by  year,  but  nothing  was  to  be  altered  as  far  as  she 
was  concerned.  Her  income,  private  apartments,  and  other  advantages 
were  retained.  The  contests,  threats,  and  discussions  that  resulted 
from  this  business  must  have  weighed  heavily  on  the  poor  abbess, 
already  in  bad  health,  and  no  doubt  hastened  her  end.  She  died  a 
few  days  after  August  28,  1524,  the  date  on  which  the  decree  enforcing 
the  strict  claustration  of  nuns  was  solemnly  proclaimed. 

Knowing  what  was  the  manner  of  life,  and  what  the  prevailing 
tone  in  this  convent,  we  shall  feel  no  surprise  at  the  abbess's  choice 
of  a  theme  from  pagan  mythology  for  the  decoration  of  her  private 
room. 

A  tesselated  pavement  laid  in  another  room  of  the  monastery  by 
Maria  Benedetti  (abbess  from  147 1  to  14S6)  was  ornamented,  not 
only  with  figures  of  gay  ladies  and  cavaliers,  but  with  pierced  and 
flaming  hearts  and  sentimental  mottoes  such  as  :  So/o  in  fc  spcro, 
Rosa,  and  Cam  il  iiiio  /csoro. 

We  can  picture  to  ourselves  the  arrival  of  Correggio,  a  young  man 
of  barely  twenty-four,  at  Parma  ;  his  entry  into  the  convent,  his 
colloquy  with  the  abbess.  She  explains  that  she  does  not  want  a 
decoration  of  a  severely  devotional  character.  Age  and  infirmities 
are  creeping  upon  her,  and  she  wishes  the  evils  of  these  last  years  to 
be  mitigated  as  far  as  possible.      Let  her  see  a  troop  of  merry  children 


iS-S  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

smiling  at  her  through  the  woven  trellis  of  her  bower !  Show  her 
the  jocund  huntress  Diana,  and  Apollo,  Minerva,  and  the  Graces  ! 
The  work  goes  on.  The  sisters  gather  round  the  windows  in  the 
cloister  beyond,  anxious  to  see  the  frescoes,  and  perhaps  not  altogether 
indifferent  to  the  painter  !  Ah  !  if  those  fair  children,  sporting  so  joy- 
ously above,  could  descend,  and  seek  maternal  caresses  in  their  arms  ! 
The  young  artist,  already  encircled  by  the  glamour  of  fame,  looks  up, 
and  smiles  !     The  gentle  watchers  move  thoughtfully  away. 

When  the  reforming  agitation  broke  out,  the  Council  of  Trent, 
alarmed  for  the  safety  of  the  Church,  proceeded  to  stringent  measures 
for  the  enforcement  of  discipline  and  of  religious  observances.  It  became 
at  first  difficult,  and  finally  almost  impossible,  to  obtain  entrance  to  the 
convent,  and  when  communication  with  the  outer  world  was  thus  cut 
off,  Correggio's  work  was  almost  forgotten.  It  is  strange  that  the 
ostentatious  asceticism  of  the  seventeenth  century  should  have  spared 
it,  and  that  no  stern  abbess  among  the  many  who  succeeded  Giovanna 
should  have  insisted  on  obliterating  the  nudities  and  divinities  of  her 
chamber.  Their  pride  in  the  possession  of  such  a  treasure  perhaps 
prevailed  over  conscientious  scruples. 

Brief  mentions  of  its  existence  were  made  from  time  to  time,  but  in 
a  vague  and  dubious  manner.  Padre  Aflo  gleaned  some  scanty  notices 
of  the  work  from  writers  of  the  last  century,  the  earliest  of  these  being 
Padre  Maurlzio  Zappata,  the  next  the  anonymous  author  of  the  A^ofa 
dellc  pin  famose  pitturc  dcllc  cliicse  di  /'(?;-;//(7,  printed  In  1725,^  the 
next  Tiraboschi  (who  relied  on  a  description  given  him  by  the  painter, 
Antonio  Bresciani),  and  so  on,  to  Ratti,  and  later  biographers  of 
Correggio. 

It  is  our  good  fortune  to  be  the  first  to  reproduce  the  precious 
testimony  of  a  contemporary  witness.  In  the  unpublished  Diario 
parniigiaiio  of  Smeraldo  Smeraldi,  a  distinguished  engineer  and  mathe- 
matician,   there    is  a  description  of  a   "  Visit  to    the    convent   of    San 


'  J'iagioiiaiiii-n/i',  etc.,  p.  8  ct  scq.  Several  monographs  have  been  written  on  these 
frescoes.  See  Pitture  di  Antonio  Allegri  esistenti  nel  nionas/ero  di  San  Paolo.  Thirty 
l)lates,  with  descriptive  text.  Parma,  1800.  Descrizione  di  una  pitlura  di  A.  A.,  dctto  il 
Correggio.     Bertoluzzi,  MS.  in  the  Parma  Library,  chaps.  A  A.  ii.  3703. 


CORREGGIO'S    FRKSCOES    IN    THE    CONVKNT   OF   SAN    I'AOI.O     .59 

Paolo,"  in  company  with  Signor  Cesarc  of  Fcrrara  and  others,  on 
August  I,  1598.  He  writes  as  follows  of  Correggio's  decorations: 
"  We  then  went  to  see  the  rooms  inhabited  by  the  princess,  and  I 
was  shown  the  chamber  decorated  by  Master  Antonio  da  Correggio. 
The  vault  is  painted  with  a  trellis  of  vines  and  fruit,  interspersed 
with  ovals,  containing  many  lovely  children  in  a  great  variety  of  attitudes  ; 
the  lunettes  are  decorated  with  compositions  in  chiaroscuro  ;  below 
these  is  a  cornice  with  a  simulated  drapery,  against  which  are  disposed 
cups,  tlagons,  and  other  vessels  of  silver,  all  Ijeautifully  rendered."  ^ 

The  room  is  almost  square  in  shape.  It  is  not  known  how  the  walls 
were  originally  decorated,  but  they  were  very  probably  hung  with  the 
so-called  "  verdure  "  tapestry.  The  stone  ornament  of  the  three  door- 
ways is  very  elegantly  sculptured  ;  the  abbess's  arms  (three  crescent 
moons  diagonally  disposed)  and  her  initials  10.  PL.  appear  in  each  of 
the  three  friezes,  and  in  one  the  motto  Omnia  virtiid  pcrvia,  a 
legend,  says  Afto,  by  which  the  abbess  entered  her  protest  against 
the  proposed  exclusion  of  strangers  from  the  convent  and  from 
her  apartments.  These  doors  have  been  displaced  more  than  once, 
first  about  1560,  when  a  refectory  was  built  next  to  the  room,  making- 
it  very  dark,-  and  again  in  1856,  when  the  large  columned  entrance  on 
the  west  was  opened  to  give  more  light  in  the  room. 

The  fireplace,  however,  is  in  its  original  place  ;  and  the  ornaments 
of  its  corbels  and  frieze  are  in  perfect  preservation.  On  the  latter  is 
carved  the  device  :  Igncin  gladio  iic  fodias  (Stir  not  the  fire  with  the 
sword). 

From  the  cornice  above  the  walls  sixteen  ribs  rise  to  the  centre  of 
the  vault,  forming  a  like  number  of  lunettes.  Correggio  covered  the 
whole  with  frescoes,  adapting  his  scheme  of  decoration  to  the  structure 
of  the  vault.  The  design  is  a  bower  of  foliage  supported  on  a  trellis 
of  canes,  with  sixteen  oval  openings,  through  which  a  joyous  band 
of  naked  Amorini,  moving  apparently  along  an  outside  gallery,  are 
seen  at  play. 

1  MS.  in  the  Palatine  Library   at  Parma,  No.    535,  fol.   81.     Communicated  by  the 
learned  Luigi  Barbieri. 

-  Baistrocchi,  N'otizic  di pittori.     MSS.  in  the  Royal  Library,  Parma,  No.  1106. 


i6o  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Along  each  rib  of  the  vault  run  two  shafts  of  the  simulated  trellis, 
terminating  above  in  a  disc,  containing  the  gilded  arms  of  the  abbess, 
below,  in  a  cluster  of  gilded  leaves  in  relief.  The  central  disc  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  star-like  frame  of  intertwined  pink  scarves,  from  which 
bunches  of  fruit  hang  into  the  sectors  above  the  ovals. 

Each  lunette  is  enclosed  in  a  semicircular  framework  of  seashells, 

springing  from   capitals   formed  of  two   rams'   heads,   from   the  spiral 

horns  of  which  hang  strings  of  precious   stones,   amber,   and  pearls. 

The   foliated    finials    of  the    ribs    above   form  part  of  these  capitals. 

Finally,    between  the  capitals,  on  the    cornice    under  the  lunettes,  a 

festooned  drapery  supports  trophies  of 

^^^''v  vases,  platters,  avi phone,  a  small  flask, 

i@P'  and  an  axe. 

,  -  I      "■  '\\\&  children  who  appear  through 

^^  the  ovals  are  all  occupied  in  various 

i/,  )  «>        fashions  ;  a    common   aim    and   senti- 

11  f*  .        ment,  however,  governs  their   playful 

//^  \  i.  .   • 

;  *        ^  I  J  activity.      Some    little    episode    occa- 

'tf  .    \»».«^  1  '  z^''^"  sionally  connects  the ////// of  one  oval 

'/Vj^,^5^>  '  i  ill  1^       '^^''■^  those  of  the   next.     Let  us  try  to 

follow  the  thread  of  interest  throueh- 


'^'^  out,  beginning  with  those  beside   the 

COAT  OF  AKMs  OF  TTO  ABBESS  GiovANNA  fireplacc.  (1)  Otic  of  thcm  seems 
about  to  climb  into  the  interior  of  the 
bower.  He  has  already  thrust  his  right  leg  through  the  opening,  and 
pulls  away  from  the  detaining  grasp  of  his  more  timid  companion,  who 
holds  him  back  with  a  vigorous,  but  most  graceful  movement  of  his 
whole  little  body.  The  desire  of  the  other  to  mount  the  trellis  within 
is  explained  by  the  action  of  the  group  in  the  next  oval,  (ii)  where  one 
Cupid  grasps  eagerly  at  the  bunch  of  fruit  suspended  above,  while  the 
other  points  out  the  most  desirable  apple.  Let  us  now  follow  the  two 
who  are  carrying  a  great  stone  (iii).  One,  who  wears  a  mantle  slung 
across  his  shoulder,  and  carries  a  wand  in  his  left  hand,  bears  the  stone 
on  his  head  ;  his  comrade  helps  him  to  steady  it.  Those  in  the  next 
oval  are  not  such  good  friends ;  (iv)  one  has  possessed  himself  of  a 


HE  CUPOLA  Of  lilt 
■  t/ic  Hcadfitca  mul  lii 


.!i 


PAOLO   (PARMA). 
•  ii-  SixUm  Chaplcfi 


•HR    CAMERA    01    SAN    TAOIX) 


mask,  which  the  fascinating  httlc  rogue  behind  him  attempts  to  snatch 
from  Iiim.  The  quarrel  attracts  the  attention  of  one  putto  in  the 
neiglihouring  group  (v),  the  other  is  busily  engaged  in  caressing 
a  beautiful  white  dog, 
which  looks  up  with 
eyes  full  of  gentle  in- 
telligence. 

W^e  now  come  to  a 
group  of  little  belliger- 
ents (vi).  One  baby 
draws  a  dart  from  the 
quiver,  while  his  friend 
instructs  him  where  to 
aim  it.  Others  make  a 
valiant  effort  to  raise  a 
long  and  heavy  lance 
(vii)  ;  their  neighbours 
string  a  bow  (viii). 
The  next  have  a  more 
troublesome  business  on 
hand  (i.\)  ;  several  of 
them  cluster  round  a 
great  mastiff,  which 
they  endeavour  to  pre- 
vent from  falling  on 
the  trembling  dog  two 
piitti  in  the  next  oval 
are  doing  their  best  to 

protect  (x).  But  it  is  time  to  start  for  the  chase  ;  a  Cupid  lifts  the 
horn  slung  across  his  neighbour's  shoulder,  and  raises  it  to  his  lips  ; 
the  latter  stands  on  his  rights,  however,  and  tries  to  snatch  it  away. 
Meanwhile,  another  blows  such  a  terrific  blast  that  two  of  his  comrades 
stop  their  ears  (xi  and  xii).  One  beautiful  boy  triumphantly  holds 
up  the  head  of  the  stag  (xiii),  which  others  are  about  to  crown  (xiv). 
A  Cupid  in  the  penultimate  oval  (xv)  hastens  to  assist  at  this  solemn 


162  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

ceremony,  but  his  companion  draws  him  away  towards  the  last  pair, 
who  are  fighting  for  the  possession  of  a  pole,  with  which  they  propose 
to  attack  the  fruit  above  (xvi).^ 

This  unity  of  argument,  this  sequence  of  infantile  episodes,  has 
passed  almost  unnoticed  hitherto  ;  we  shall  see,  however,  that  it  was  a 
very  characteristic  trait  of  Correggio's  compositions.  The  /;////'  of  the 
Catucra  di  San  Paolo  are  robust  and  vigorously  modelled  urchins  ; 
they  are  foreshortened  in  a  masterly  manner  ;  but  in  some  of  the 
little  figures  there  is  an  undeniable  clumsiness,  which  is  greatly 
modified  in  the  genii  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  and  disappears 
entirely  from  those  of  the  Duomo.  Even  among  these  earlier  groups 
there  are  individual  figures  of  ideal  beauty  ;  but  all  are  somewhat 
too  rubicund,  and  their  laughter  has  not  the  gleeful  abandon  that 
charms  in  their  successors. 

As  a  whole,  however,  the  composition  is  marked  by  a  delightful 
vivacity  and  extraordinary  ease  and  spirit. 

The  lunettes  in  chiaroscuro  are  undoubtedly  the  most  marvellous 
part  of  the  composition.  We  can  recall  nothing  of  the  same  period 
and  genre  which  surpasses  them,  either  in  form  or  execution. 

The  painter  has  represented  them  as  niches,  containing  statues  : 
either  isolated  figures,  or  groups.  We  will  briefly  describe  these, 
following  the  order  observed  in  dealing  with  the  ovals,  (i)  The 
Graces.  The  motive  is  that  of  the  classic  group,  but  the  spirited 
treatment  is  entirely  novel.  Here  we  have  no  longer  the  graceful 
feminine  forms  and  serene  composure  of  attitude  characteristic  of 
antique  art,  but  three  robust  and  finely  modelled  figures,  their  move- 
ments full  of  ease  and  vigour,  their  loose  hair  floating  in  the  wind.  It 
is  by  no  means  certain  that  Correggio  drew  his  inspiration  from  some 
piece  of  classic  sculpture.     The  motive  was  a  common  one  in  his  time  ; 

1  There  is  a  drawing  in  the  Weimar  Museum  of  five  of  these  ovals,  in  red  chalk,  on 
which  the  signature  ANT.  C.  appears  no  less  than  three  times.  This  insistence  on  the 
monogram  is  very  suspicious  in  connection  with  Correggio,  only  two  of  whose  juvenile 
works  are  signed,  and  by  no  means  persuades  us  of  the  authenticity  of  the  drawing.  It 
agrees  in  every  detail  with  the  paintings,  but  is  very  coarsely  executed,  and  bears  traces 
of  numerous  corrections.  The  Cupid  who  carries  the  stone,  and  the  one  who  is  seated 
with  the  jiole  in  his  hand,  are  especially  faulty. 


LUNETTES    IN    THE    CAMERA    DI    SAN    PAOLO  i6;, 

it  was  frequently  used  in  emblems  and  on  medals  ;  we  have  seen  that 
it  figured  on  the  medal  of  Giovanni  Pico  della  Mirandola.  (ii)  Adonis, 
holding  a  staff  in  his  uplifted  right  hand,  (iii)  Bonus  Eventus.  A 
young  man  with  a  mantle  drawn  round  his  loins  ;  in  his  left  hand  he 
holds  a  cornucopia,  and  with  his  right  he  pours  a  libation  on  an  altar 
adorned  with  bas-reliefs,  (iv)  The  Earth.  A  seated  figure,  of  calm 
and  solemn  aspect,  her  left  elbow  leaning  on  a  rock.  She  is  draped 
in  an  ample  robe,  falling  in  graceful  folds  about  her  form.  In  one 
hand  she  holds  a  cornucopia,  in  the  other  a  scorpion.  A  serpent  rears 
its  crest  above  her  forehead.  At  her  feet  lies  a  basket  filled  with  ears 
of  corn.^ 

We  may,  perhaps,  read  the  allegory  as  follows  : — The  Earth  in  her 
multiform  fecundity,  animal  and  vegetable,  brings  forth  good  and 
necessary  things,  such  as  corn  and  fruit,  and  also  venomous  creatures, 
such  as  the  asp  and  the  scorpion.  (v)  Juno  Chastised.  She  is 
suspended  from  the  sky,  her  hands  bound  together,  and  a  golden 
anvil  fastened  to  her  feet  to  make  the  punishment  more  severe. 
In  Book  XV.  of  the  Iliad,  Jupiter,  threatening  Juno,  reminds  her 
of  having  already  inflicted  this  punishment  upon  her.  The  modelling 
of  this  lithe  figure  is  superb,  and  the  curved  shadow  it  casts  into 
the  niche  gives  it  a  strangely  Illusory  effect  of  high  relief,  (vi) 
A  W^stal.  The  ample  draperies  of  a  long,  full  robe  fall  about  her 
figure.  She  holds  a  torch  in  her  left  hand,  and  a  patera  in  her  right, 
from  which  she  pours  a  libation  on  a  circular  altar,  (vii)  This  figure 
of  an  old  man  reclining  on  a  couch  has  been  supposed  by  some  to 
symbolize  Repose,  by  others  Meditation  ;  others  again  see  in  it  merely 
a  PJiilosopher.  He  holds  an  ear  of  corn  in  his  right  hand,  (viii) 
A  Dorie  Temple  of  Jupiter.  The  statue  of  the  god  is  seen  through  the 
open  door.  The  architecture  is  indicated  in  a  masterly  fashion  by  a  few- 
simple  lines.  (i.\)  The  Fates,  seated  on  a  wooded  hill.  Clotho  holds 
the  distaff,  Lachesis  draws  out  the  thread,  and  Atropos  cuts   it  with 

1  Meyer  makes  some  curious  mistakes  in  his  description  of  this  lunette  (p.  119). 
He  calls  the  scorpion  an  apple,  and  the  basket  of  corn  a  basket  of  fruit.  Others  sup- 
])Ose  the  figure  to  represent  Summer,  seeing  in  the  serpent  on  her  head  a  proboscis, 
and  in  the  scorpion  a  zodiacal  sign,  regardless  of  the  fact  that,  as  such,  it  symbolises 
October. 


i64  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

her  scissors,  and  twists  the  short  threads  round  the  spindle.  It  is 
a  pecuHar  feature  of  this  composition  that  the  Fates  are  represented 
as  young  women,  winged.  How  did  the  painter,  or  the  person  who 
suggested  the  subject  to  him,  intend  this  allegory  to  be  read  ?  Perhaps 
the  idea  he  seeks  to  convey  is  that  life,  like  all  other  gifts  of  the 
gods  to  man,  is  beautiful  always,  beautiful  in  its  birth,  in  its  develop- 
ment, and  in  its  close,  (x)  A  woman,  who  walks  along  with  stately 
grace,  her  draperies  fluttering  in  the  breeze.  She  holds  an  infant  in 
her  arms.  Called  by  some,  Ves/a  loith  iJic  Infant  Jupiter ;  by  others, 
Ino  Lcncotkoc,  the  nurse  of  Bacchus,  (xi)  Ceres  with  the  torch  and 
apple,  (xii)  A  satyr  leaning  against  the  stump  of  a  tree,  to  which 
his  pipe  is  slung.  He  is  seen  in  profile,  and  is  blowing  into  a  shell, 
(xiii)  Chastity.  She  holds  up  a  dove  in  her  right  hand,  and  with 
her  left  she  slightly  raises  the  gauzy  robe  through  which  the 
contours  of  her  blooming  form  are  visible.  It  is  difficult  to  imagine 
a  more  graceful  outline,  or  a  more  delicate  effect  of  transparency 
in  drapery,  (xiv)  Virginity,  with  a  lily  in  her  hand,  (xv)  Fortune, 
a  cornucopia  in  her  left  hand,  and  in  her  right  a  rudder,  resting  on  a 
globe,  (xvi)  Minerva,  a  helmet  on  her  head,  a  torch  and  an  axe 
in  her  hands.  All  these  exquisite  chiarosatri,  illuminated  from  below, 
throw  shadows  which  are  diffused  in  the  upper  part  and  the  back- 
ground of  the  niches,  and  are  so  lightly  and  artfully  disposed  that  the 
figures  seem  to  hover  in  space.  In  form  they  follow  antique  models  ; 
but  each  conception  is  transformed,  and  moulded  afresh,  so  to  speak, 
by  a  new  and  very  personal  sentiment,  as  we  have  already  pointed 
out  in  describing  the  Fates  and  the  Graces.  Various  antique  coins 
and  medals  have  been  suggested  as  the  originals  from  which  the  painter 
drew  his  inspiration,  but  in  no  case  do  these  agree  exactly  with  the 
chiaroscuri.  The  Fortinic,  says  Gherardo  de  Rossi, ^  whose  sugges- 
tion is  adopted  by  Meyer,  was  probably  derived  from  a  medal  of 
Vespasian,  with  the  motto  Fort u nee  Rediici;  the  Bonus  Evcntus  bears 
some  likeness  to  a  medal  of  Nero,  with  the  legend  Genio  August i  ;  the 
Vestal  recalls  a  medal  struck  by  Domltian,  inscribed  Divi  Cccsaris 
mater  ;  according  to  Martini,  the  Ceres  is  closely  akin  to  a  figure  of 
'   Dcsifizidiic  di  una  pittiira,  etc.,  pp   ■^■^,  37  and  39. 


LUNETTES    IN    THE   CAMERA    DI    SAN    PAOLO  165 

the  goddess  on  several  antique  coins.  None  of  these  suggestions, 
however,  are  very  confidently  maintained  by  their  authors,  though  it  is, 
of  course,  evident  that  the  painter  was  inspired  by  antique  models. 
Affo,  influenced  by  his  own  archaeological  learnings,  sought  to  prove 
that  there  were  several  collectors  of  coins  and  cameos  in  Parma  in 
Correggio's  time  ;  he  mentions  Taddeo  Ugoleto,  Bernardo  Bergonzi, 
Giorgio  Anselmi,  the  Prati,  and  the  Baiardi.^  But  his  demonstration 
is  of  little  value,  taking  into  account  the  fact  that  every  house  of 
any  importance  during  the  Renaissance  owned  collections  of  antiques, 
and  that  AllegrI  had  seen  all  the  treasures  of  the  Lords  of  Correggio, 
and  of  Isabella   d'Este. 

We  are  somewhat  at  a  loss  to  understand  Martini's  assertion  that 
the  artist  was  governed  in  his  choice  of  these  subjects  by  the  place 
they  were  to  adorn.  If  this  were  so,  how  arc  we  to  explain  the 
presence  of  the  Satyr,  the  Graces,  the  Adonis,  the  nurse  of  the  infant 
Bacchus,  etc.  ?  The  biographer  was  misled,  no  doubt,  by  the  Vestal, 
the  Chastity,  and  the  Virginity,  which  may  be  allowed  to  have  had 
at  least  a  theoretic   bearing  on  the  lives  of  the  nuns. 

The  scheme  of  decoration  was  governed  by  no  very  strict  ideas 
of  relation,  as  a  whole.  But  the  motive  which  may  be  said  to  strike 
the  keynote  of  the  composition  is  the  Diana  painted  on  the  wall 
over  the  fireplace.  This  figure  was  probably  chosen,  not  as  the 
symbol  of  purity,  but  as  the  personification  of  the  moon  in  the  Abbess's 
coat  of  arms.  The  goddess  is  surrounded  by  a  jocund  band  of  Cupids 
armed  with  hunting  implements,  and  by  a  cohort  of  her  Olympian 
comrades.  The  crescent  moon,  repeated  over  the  doors  and  in  the 
centre  of  the  vault,  shines  again  in  the  fair  hair  of  Diana,  who,  waving 
her  azure  veil,  sits  on  the  edge  of  a  car  drawn  by  two  stags,  her  bow 
slung  across  her  shoulders.  The  facial  type  of  the  Diana  is  that  of 
the  Madonna  in  the  Repose  in  Egypt  of  the  Uffizi,  and  of  the  con- 
temporary pictures  in  the  Prado  and  at  Hamijton  Court.  The  colour 
is  hot,  especially  in  the  flesh  tints  of  the  Cupids,  who  have  not  the 
delicate  pearly  contours  of  the  Amorini  in  later  works.  The  folds  of 
the  draperies,  though  less  severe  than  those  of  the  artist's  first  pictures, 

•  Jia^ionamc/iti',  etc.,  p.  45. 


i66 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


are  still  long,  scanty,  and  soberly  disposed,  and  have  none  of  the 
daring  convolutions  he  afterwards  affected.  These  characteristics 
seem  to  us  sufficient  to  fix  the  approximate  date  of  this  work,  even 
setting  aside  a  technical  peculiarity,  unnoticed  as  far  as  I  know  by 
any  former  critic  of  Correggio,  which  fully  establishes  the  priority  of 
the  San  Paolo  frescoes  to  all  existing  decorations  by  the  master,  and 
settles  the  question   as  to   what  was  his  first  undertaking  in   Parma. 


Krescu  by  Correggk 


.  di  San  Paolo. 


Following  the  example  of  Mantegna,  from  whose  Camera  dcgli  Sposi 
he  no  doubt  took  the  general  idea  of  his  composition,  he  painted  his 
frescoes  with  short,  close  strokes,  and,  instead  of  putting  in  the  lights 
upon  the  surfaces  in  shadow,  he  glazed  over  in  the  shadows  the  light 
ground.  In  treating  the  flesh-tints,  he  gradually  built  up  the  more 
opaque  tones,  one  upon  another.  In  all  the  frescoes  he  subsequently 
painted,  even  in  those  executed  very  soon  afterwards,  at  San  Giovanni, 
he  abandoned  this  method  almost  entirely,  blending  his  tints  on  the 
palette    and   on   the  walls  themselves.     The  lunettes  have  changed  a 


THE    CAMERA    DI    SAN    PAOLO  167 

o-ood  deal  in  tone.  The  yellowish  touches  with  which  the  master 
brought  the  shells  of  the  framework  and  the  heads  of  the  rams  into 
relief  have  become  merged  in  the  ground  of  the  same  tint,  and  have 
assumed  a  dull,  putty-coloured  hue. 

The  work  we  have  described  has  suftered  in  various  other  wajs. 
The  foliage  of  the  bower,  more  especially  in  the  garlands  round  the 
ovals,  has  been  coarsely  restored,  shapeless  blotches  of  colour  doing 
duty  for  leaves.  The  sky  against  which  the  Cupids  are  relieved, 
originally  of  a  soft  greenish-blue,  is  now,  save  in  a  few  isolated 
patches,  covered  with  a  heavy  ashen  coating,  which  ought  to  be 
removed.  Finally,  all  that  part  of  the  fresco  adjoining  the  old  chimney 
has  been  greatly  injured  by  the  snow  and  rain  which  penetrated 
through  this  channel. 

But  what  a  glory  of  colour  must  have  burst  on  the  spectator 
who  entered  this  vaulted  chamber  in  its  first  freshness  !  With  what 
delighted  wonder  must  the  abbess,  the  nuns,  lorio  da  Erba,  the 
architect  of  this  and  the  adjoining  room,  and  Francesco  d'Agrate, 
the  sculptor  of  the  stone  reliefs,  have  gazed  on  the  newly-finished 
work !  With  what  satisfaction  must  Scipione  Montino  have  contem- 
plated its  beauties  ! 

There  were  some,  however,  whose  admiration  was  probably  not 
of  so  jubilant  a  nature.  The  painters  of  the  city,  more  especially 
Temperelli  and  Araldi,  suddenly  saw  their  art  condemned  and  their 
labours  stultified.  The  blow  must  have  fallen  with  peculiar  heaviness 
on  Araldi,  who,  as  painter  to  the  convent  of  San  Paolo,  had  decorated 
the  choir  of  the  church  ^  and  the  room  adjoining  that  painted  by 
Correggio  only  a  few  years  before  (15 10  and  15 14),  covering  the  whole 
with  a  patient  net-work  of  ornaments,  grotesques,  small  historical 
compositions,  and  obscure  allegories. 

Vasari  tells  how  Francia,  seeing  Raphael's  Saint  Cecilia  "  not 
painted,  but  living  .  .  .  ."  was  so  overcome  with  grief  and  envy  at 
the  beauty  of  the  picture,  that  he  shortly  afterwards  took  to  his  bed, 
and  was  commonly  reported  to  have  died  of  sorrow." 

1  Leone  Smagliati,  Cnvnuiu;  MSS.  Baistrocchi,  Nothie  di pittori,  MSS.  in  the  Royal 
Palatine  Library  at  Parma.  ■    Vite  dei  piic  eccelhtiti  pittori,  iii.   p.  546. 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


This  story  is  disproved  by  an  examination  of  dates,  but,  like  a 
Scriptural  parable,  it  remains  to  testify  to  the  emotion  of  the  old 
artists   who   flourished   towards  the   close  of  the   fifteenth    century  on 

seeing  the  works 
of  the  new  gene- 
ration.^ 

After  finish- 
ing the  decora- 
tions  of  the 
Camera  di  San 
Paolo,  Correg- 
gio,  as  we  have 
shown,  probably 
returned  to  his 
native  city,  and 
spent  the  year 
15 19  there,  com- 
ing back  to  Par- 
ma in  1520  to 
work  in  the 
church  of  San 
Giovanni  Evan- 
gelista.  Meyer 
supposes  the 
painter  to  have 
done  but  little 
work  at  this 
period,  his  time  being  taken  up  by  frequent  journeys  between  Correggio 
and  Parma.-     But  as  a  Hict,  various  documents  show  him  to  have  been 

'  Tlie  rooms  decorated  by  Correggio  and  Araldi,  and  others  adjoining  them,  were 
handed  over  to  the  Accademia  di  Belle  Arti  by  the  municipaHty  of  Parma,  November 
16,  1810.  In  1834,  a  scheme  for  the  isolation  of  these  rooms  from  the  body  of  the 
building  was  discussed.  Eleven  years  later,  when  the  new  entrance  and  the  west  porch  were 
finished,  the  red  velvet  hangings  obtained  from  Marie  Louise  de  Bourbon  were  placed 
on  the  walls.  See  the  MS.  minutes  of  the  R.  Accademia  di  Belle  Arti,  vol.  ii.  p.  105  ; 
iii.  pp.  108  and  193.  Documents  in  the  archives  of  the  Parma  Gallery  (M.  i),  under  the 
heading  Cam  ere  di  San  Paolo.  ^  Correggio,  p.  133. 


In  the  Cappella  degKi  En 


COPIES    ASCRIBED    TO    THE    MASTER  169 

constantly  in  Correggio  between  January  and  October,  15  19,  whereas 
no  records  exist  of  his  presence  in  Parma.  The  communication  made 
by  the  Abbe  Mazza  to  Tiraboschi  touching-  a  sum  of  money  paid  to 
Correggio  by  the  Benedictines,  omits  all  mention  of  the  day  or  month, 
and  as  no  entry  of  any  such  payment  is  to  be  found  in  the  accounts 
of  the  monastery,  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  statement  was 
based  on  a  misconception.^ 

On  the  other  hand,  it  seems  certain  that  he  was  painting  various 
small  works  during  this  interval.  \^isari  says  that  he  executed 
pictures  and  other  paintings  for  patrons  in  Lombardy,  and  Armenini 
declares  that  he  himself  saw  several  of  these,  which  were  "  held  in 
the  highest  honour  "   [onora/isshiii).'- 

It  is  not  improbable,  however,  that  works  painted  by  his  scholars 
and  imitators  were  ascribed  to  this  period. 

Even  now,  indeed,  such  a  number  of  apocryphal  works  arc  attri- 
buted to  the  master,  and  more  especially  to  this  particular  stage  of  his 
career,  that  we  might  exhaust  the  patience  of  our  readers,  and  increase 
our  volume  to  an  inordinate  size  by  discussion  and  description  of  them 
in  detail.'^ 

Turning  over  the  minutes  of  the  Accademia  di  belle  Arti  of  Parma, 
we  find  entries  referring  to  an  almost  incredible  number  of  works  offered 
to  the  gallery,  and  rejected  as  spurious.  I  myself  have  pictures  sub- 
mitted to  me  almost  daily  as  the  work  of  Correggio.  Productions  of 
his  scholars  are  confidently  assigned  to  the  master,  to  say  nothing  of 

1  As  we  shall  see  presently,  the  e.\penses  connected  with  Correggio's  paintings  were 
entered  by  the  monks  in  a  book,  from  1519  to  1528,  which  accounts,  perhaps,  for  the 
mistake. 

-  (i.  B.  Armenini,  Dd  vert  prcidti  dclla pittura,  \^.  iSS.      Ra\enna,  15S7. 

3  Meyer  {op.  cit.  p.  132  et  seq.)  includes  in  this  category  the  picture  of  the  Madonna 
and  Child,  with  the  patron  saints  of  Parma  and  several  angels,  formerly  belonging  to  the 
Duca  Melzi,  and  now  in  the  Casa  Scotti  at  Milan,  the  authenticity  of  which  was  accepted 
by  the  Accademia  of  Parma  and  by  Pungileoni  (i.  pp.  92-93  ;  ii,  p.  135).  We  may  add 
that  it  is  undoubtedly  by  Giorgio  Gandino  del  Grano.  The  history  of  the  Apollo  and 
Marsyas  in  the  Hermitage  at  St.  Petersburg  is  given  by  Meyer,  who  quotes  Miindler's 
ascription  of  the  work  to  II  Rosso  Fiorentino.  There  was  a  time  when  Parmigianino's 
well-known  Cupid  forging  the  Bow  (see  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  114,  and  ii.  p.  159)  was  ascribed 
to  Correggio,  and  also  the  Procession  to  Calvary  in  the  Parma  Gallery,  once  attributed 
to  M.  A.  Anselmi,  but  certainly  neither  by  the  latter  nor  his  master. 

Z 


1 70  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

co^\e?,,  pas/rcci,  and  even  forgeries.  Mengs  describes  how  Sebastiano 
Ricci  attempted  to  sell  one  of  his  own  pictures  as  the  work  of 
Correggio.^ 

These  facile  and  confident  attributions  are  by  no  means  confined  to 
private  owners.  Pictures  in  many  public  galleries  are  labelled  with 
names  to  which  they  can  lay  no  possible  claim. 

We  may  now  consider  the  works  Antonio  must  have  painted 
immediately  after  151S.  A  small  Jllarriagc  of  Si.  Catherine,  in  which 
the  kneeling  saint,  the  palm  in  her  right  hand,  and  the  sword 
beside  her,  receives  the  ring  from  the  Infant  on  the  Virgin's  lap,  has 
been  reproduced  in  several  copies  or  replicas.  No  very  authoritative 
pronouncement  has  been  made  as  to  the  authenticity  of  these  various 
examples,  but  the  majority  of  votes  has  been  cast  for  the  picture 
in  the  National  Museum  of  Naples,  that  in  Signer  Paolo  Fabrizi's 
collection  at  Rome,  and  Dr.  Theodor  Schall's  example  at  Berlin.- 
Our  own  conclusion  is  directly  opposed  to  that  of  INIeyer.  The  little 
picture  at  Naples  strikes  us  as  an  obvious  copy  by  one  oi  the 
Carracci. 

AUegri's  pure  tints,  his  transparent  carnations,  his  delicate  shadows, 
are  alike  wanting  in  this  work.  The  brushing  is  broad  and  almost 
coarse  ;  the  colour  is  laid  on  with  a  heavy  hand,  and  the  drawing 
shows  a  want  of  refinement  impossible  to  Correggio,  even  in  his  large 
pictures,  or  the  colossal  figures  of  his  frescoes.  Those  who  have 
carefully  examined  Annibale  Carracci's  smaller  works,  notably  the 
picture  numbered  1,007  ''^  '^^e  Uffizi,  will  be  easily  convinced  that 
the  Marriage  of  Si.  Caihcrinc  at  Naples  is  one  of  his  numerous 
copies  after  Correggio.      In  the  Im'eiitory   of    the  Farnese    collection 

'  Opere,  ii.  \i.  171.  Tiraboschi,  p.  258.  Five  jiictures  in  the  National  Museum  of 
Naples  are  described  as  by  Correggio,  the  Zinga>-ci/a  being  the  only  authentic  example 
(C.  Ricci,  Di  alciini  qiiadri  di  scuola  parmigiana,  etc.,  pp.  7-10).  In  the  Uffizi,  again,  a 
decapitated  head  of  John  the  Baptist  is  attributed  to  him,  which  is  not  even  a  work  of  the 
school  of  Parma,  also  a  copy  of  one  of  the  cherubs  in  the  cathedral  of  Tarma.  Another 
cherub,  in  the  Pitti  Gallery,  is  a  copy  from  the  Madonna  wi/Ii  .Sf.  Scliastian  at  Dresden. 
We  will  spare  the  reader  a  further  enumeration. 

-  In  the  Royal  Library  at  Turin  there  is  a  drawing  of  the  Marriage  of  Sf.  Catherine, 
which  even  Morelli  ascribed  to  Correggio  {Italian  Painters,  ii.  p.  148).  It  has  certain 
characteristics  of  the  master,  but  these  are  discounted  by  many  curious  defects. 


Marriage  of  SL   Catherine. 


THE    MARRTAGR    OF    ST.    (^VTHERINE  171 

at  Parma,  both  an  authentic  example  and  a  copy  are  mentioned,  and 
the  hitter  is  in  all  probability  the  picture  now  at  Naples.^ 

The  sentiment  of  the  composition  is  altogether  delightful  in  its 
naive  simplicity.  St.  Catherine's  gentle  emotion  is  no  less  engaging 
than  the  ingenuous  action  of  the  Babe,  who,  holding  her  finger  in  his 
little  hand,  turns  to  his  mother,  as  if  demanding  :  "  Is  this  the  finger 
on  which  I  am  to  put  the  ring  ?"  The  Virgin  smiles  assent.  In  the 
arrangement  of  the  figures,  and  the  daring  interlacement  of  the  hands 
(the  Virgin  lays  hers  on  those  of  the  mystic  bride  and  bridegroom), 
we  trace  the  germ  of  the  exquisite  MaiTiaoc  of  SL  Catherine  in  the 
Louvre,  a  work  we  judge  from  indications  such  as  the  types,  the 
execution,  the  treatment  of  the  hair,  the  folds  of  the  draperies,  the 
tapering  fingers,  and,  above  all,  the  glowing  and  transparent  carnations, 
to  have  been  painted  after  1522,  and  certainly  not  between  15  17  and 
15  19,  as  Meyer  and  nearly  all  later  biographers  suppose.- 

The  subject  of  the  picture  makes  it  convenient,  however,  to  speak 
ot  it  here,  introducing  it  with  a  quotation  from  Theophile  Gautier's 
graceful  description  :  "  The  Infant  Jesus  is  seated  on  the  lap  of  his 
mother,  who  helps  him  to  place  the  ring  on  St.  Catherine's  finger. 
The  action  produces  the  most  exquisite  group  of  hands  ever  brought 
into  the  centre  of  a  picture.  They  seem  to  be  fashioned  of  lilies,  so 
pure,  delicate,  and  aristocratic  are  the  taper  fingers  with  their  uplifted 
tips.  The  tender  ecstasy  of  the  saint,  who  takes  the  unconscious  Babe 
for  her  spouse  throughout  all  eternity,  is  admirably  rendered.  Behind 
St.  Catherine  stands  a  St.  Sebastian  of  ideal  beauty  ;  the  arrows  of  his 
martyrdom,  which  he  holds  in  his  hand,  give  him  the  appearance  of  a 
Cupid.      In  the  background  are  scenes  from  the  martyrdom  of  the  two 


1  There  is  another  Marriage  of  St.  Catherine,  which  has  long  been  attributed  to 
Correggio,  in  the  Hermitage  at  St.  Petersburg.  It  passed  into  the  collection  from  the 
gallery  of  Count  Briill,  minister  of  Augustus  III.  of  Poland.  On  the  back  of  the  picture 
is  written,  Laus  Deo:  per  Domta  Matilde  d'Este  Antonio  Lieto  da  Correggio  fece  il presenie 
quadro per  sua  divozione,  anno  15 17.  The  inscription  is  not  genuine.  No  Matilda  of 
Este  flourished  at  the  date  mentioned.  Even  Mengs  (ii.  p.  170)  and  Tiraboschi 
(vi.  p.  258)  questioned  its  authenticity.  Waagen  pronounced  unhesitatingly  against  Cor- 
reggio's  authorship  of  the  work,  which  is  no  longer  ascribed  to  the  master.  (Meyer 
p.  106.     Venturi,  La  Ji.  Galleria  estense,  p.  322.)  -   Correggio,  p.  322. 


172  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

saints  ;  but  these  episodes,  the  introduction  of  which  was  still  sanctioned 
by  custom,  are  slightly  indicated,  and  of  small  dimensions.  They  are 
immersed  in  shadow,  and  so  arranged  as  not  to  distract  attention  from 
the  principal  subject.  .  .  Beneath  the  light  amber  veil  which  time  has 
drawn  over  the   picture,  we  discern   the   cool  and   silvery  colour,  the 


Signor  Paolo  Fabrizi,  Ro 


azure  reflections,  the  opalescent  glint,  as  of  mother-of-pearl,  and  the 
whole  gamut  of  delicate  gradations  that  lurks  in  the  mysterious  chiaros- 
curo." ' 


'   Giihh'   (h-  VAiiiah-ur   ail   Afi/scc  dii  Louvre.     Paris,   1S82.     G.  Lafenestre  and  E, 
Richtenbcrgcr,  Lc  Music  National  du  Louvre,  p.  45.     Paris,  1893. 


THE    MARRIAGE    OF  ST.    CATHERINE  173 

Though  the  less  fully  developed  types  of  the  Saint  Cat/icriiic  are 
conclusive  as  to  its  priority,  there  are  certain  close  affinities  between 
this  picture  and  the  so-called  Sain/  Jerome  Madonna,  of  which  we  shall 
speak  further  on.  These  are  most  evident  in  the  modelling  of  the 
Infant's  little  body,  in  the  attentive  expression  of  his   face,  and,  above 


all,  in  the  tones  of  the  landscape,  the  small  kneeling  figures  of  which  are 
almost  identical  in  the  two  pictures.  The  widespread  celebrity  of  the 
Saint  Catherine  dates  from  a  very  early  period.  Vasari  relates  how 
Girolamo  da  Carpi,  when  he  went  to  Modena  to  see  some  of  Correggio's 
works,  "  was  not  only  filled  with  wonder   as  he   looked    at  them,  but 


174  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

perfectly  stupefied  by  one  in  particular.  This  was  a  large  picture,  a 
most  divine  work,  in  which  our  Lady  holds  the  Child,  who  espouses 
St.  Catherine  ;  they  are  attended  by  St.  Sebastian  and  others  ;  the 
heads  are  of  such  extraordinary  beauty,  that  they  seem  to  have  been 
modelled  in  Paradise.  It  would  be  impossible  to  see  a  rendering  of 
hair  and  hands  more  beautiful,  or  colour  more  delicate  and  natural. 
The  owner  of  the  picture,  Messer  Francesco  Grillenzoni,  who  was 
one  of  Correggio's  closest  friends,  gave  Girolamo  leave  to  copy  it,  and 
he  reproduced  it  with  a  diligence  that  it  could  hardly  be  possible  to 
surpass."  ^ 

A  legend  afterwards  grew  up  in  connection  with  this  picture. 

Tiraboschi-  and  some  others  believed,  on  the  statement  of  Sandrart, 
that  Correggio  painted  it  for  one  Catherine,  a  compassionate  woman, 
who  had  nursed  him  tenderly  during  a  serious  illness.  The  subject 
of  the  picture,  or  perhaps  the  name  of  the  saint,  suggested  this 
touching  story  to  Sandrart,  or  to  those  who  communicated  it  to  him. 
But  as  .St.  Sebastian  also  figures  in  the  composition,  Ratti,  anxious 
to  complete  the  onomastic  allusions  of  the  picture,  improved  the  legend 
by  adding  that  this  Catherine  was  the  wife  of  a  gentleman  named 
Sebastian.  He  says  nothing,  however,  of  Allegri's  illness,  or  the  good 
offices  of  the  lady,  but  declares  the  picture  to  have  been  given  to  the 
couple  in  recognition  of  their  having  procured  him  the  order  for 
the  picture  he  painted  for  the  Confraternity  of  St.  Peter  Martyr  at 
Modena.^^  Pungileoni  thought  it  incumbent  on  him  to  produce  a  new- 
version.  Finding  that  Correggio  had  a  sister  Catherine,  married  to 
one  Vincenzo  Mariani,  he  concluded  that  the  picture  was  a  wedding 
gift  to  Caterina  Allegri.  It  is  a  pity  the  husband  was  not  called 
Sebastian  !  Pungileoni  was  unable  to  give  the  date  of  this  marriage, 
but  he  was  wonderfully  well  informed  as  to  the  sentiments  of  all  the 
persons  concerned!  "Antonio's  grief  at  the  loss  of  his  sister,"  he 
writes,  "  may  be  conceived  from  the  extreme  sensibility  of  his  dis- 
position. A  heart  like  his  must  have  longed  to  show  its  gratitude  by 
the  best  means  in  his  power,  namely,  in  the  painting  of  a  picture  which 
should  speak  to  her   continually   of  her  absent   brother.      Those   who 

1    /7/,-,  vi.  1).  470.  -  Op.  a/,  vi.  pp.  277-37S.  '•  Op.  cit.  p.  49. 


THE    IMARRIAGR    OF   ST.    CATHERINE  ,75 

know  a  woman's  heart,  and  more  especially  the  heart  of  a  woman 
sorrowing  over  her  separation  from  her  family,  may  imagine  Caterina's 
delight  in  this  memorial."^  But  with  all  his  eagerness  to  explain  the 
workings  of  Correggio's  mind  to  the  world,  the  worthy  Piingileoni  was 
but  ill-informed  as  compared  with  Bigi,  who  gives  the  whole  history 
of  the  wedding  in  most  moving  detail,  describing,  iiitci-  alia,  the 
apparition  of  the  maiden  Correggio  afterwards  married,  and  the  sudden 
passion  he  inspired  at  her  first  sight  of  him  in  the  church.'- 

Even  Bigi,  however,  was  outdone  by  Madame  Mignaty,  who  tells 
us  that  six  other  maidens,  "  bewitched  by  the  same  sweet  enchantment, 
desired  to  take  the  veil  !  "  " 

This  is  no  solitary  instance  of  the  absurd  sentimentalities  biographers 
have  woven  round  the  works  of  Correggio,  but  we  take  it  as  a  typical 
illustration  of  such  romances,  of  which  there  is  no  need  to  multiply 
examples.  The  true  history  of  the  picture  has  been  gleaned  from 
contemporary  documents  by  Adolfo  \'enturi  :  "It  was  painted  for  the 
Grillenzoni,  a  family  of  the  first  importance  in  RIodena  during  the 
sixteenth  century,  rich  not  only  in  material  wealth,  but  in  culture  and 
honourable  tradition.  Giovanni  Grillenzoni,  brother  of  the  Messer 
Francesco  mentioned  by  Vasari,  was  one  of  the  heads  of  the  famous 
Accadeiiiia,  the  chief  centre  of  the  controversies  set  in  motion  by 
the  reforming  spirit  of  the  age,  and  did  much  to  diffuse  the  love  of 
culture  and  of  letters  in  Modena.  He  was  known  as  an  ardent  lover 
of  the  arts,  and  Castelvetro  dedicated  a  poem  to  him,  entitled  Pictura, 
in  which  he  described  the  paintings  he  was  anxious  Grillenzoni  should 
have  executed  for  a  room  in  his  house,  as  a  record  of  the  rare  and 
admirable  harmony  that  obtained  among  the  members  of  his  large 
family.  The  picture  remained  in  the  possession  of  the  Grillenzoni 
till  1582,  in  which  year  it  was  obtained  for  Caterina  Nobili  Sforza, 
Contessa  di  Santa  Flora,  by  the  intermediary  of  Cardinal  Luigi  d'Este. 
Bottari  and  Meyer  both  believed  it  to  have  belonged  to  the  cardinal 
himself,  but  documents  which  have  lately  come  to  light  prove  that  he 

^  Op.  lit.  i.  p.  9S  ;  ii.  jip.  136,  13S,  and  141.  Pungilconi  also  supposed  \\\c  Ziiii^ardla 
to  be  a  jiortrait  of  Correggio's  wife. 

-  Delia  vita  e  ddle  operc,  etc.,  p.  15.  "  Op.  at.  pp.  294-295. 


176 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


merely  negotiated  the  transfer  with  the  Grillenzoni  on  behalf  of  Pope 
Julius  III.'s  great-niece,  in  whose  possession  Coradusz,  the  Emperor 
Rudolph  II. 's  Chancellor,  saw  it  in  1595.^  After  passing  through  a 
variety  of  hands,  it  appeared  in  Cardinal  Antonio  Barberini's  collection 
in  1650,  and  was  presented  by  him  to  Cardinal  Mazarin,-  from  whose 
heirs  it  was  acquired  for  Louis  XIV.'s  museum. 

We  will  now  return  to  the  three  pictures  we  believe  to  have 
preceded  the  JMarriage  of  St.   Catherine.     These   are   the   Madonna 

suckling  the  Child,  known  as  the 
Jlladonna  del  Latte,  the  Virgin 
and  Child  ivith  the  Basket,  known 
as  the  RIadonna  delta  Ccsta,  and 
the  Virgin  adoring  the  Infant 
Christ. 

Great  uncertainty  prevails  as 
to  the  first  of  these,  owing  to  the 
many  old  copies  that  e.\:ist,  and 
the  contradictory  statements  of 
different   writers. 

The  Virgin,  smiling  placidly, 
offers    her   left    breast  to   the   In- 

l[i  the  Royal  Library,  Turin. 

fant  Jesus  ;  he,  however,  laying 
one  little  hand  on  her  shoulder,  turns  away  to  take  the  fruit  offered 
him  by  a  winged  angel,  in  the  version  at  Budapest,  by  the  little 
St.  John,  in  the  example  at  the  Hermitage.  Domenico  Ottonelli 
described  a  similar  picture  in  1652,  in  his  Trattato  delta  pittura^ 
but  it  has  not  been  possible  to  trace  its  subsequent  history,  and  we 
have  therefore  no  means  of  identifying  it  with  any  of  the  existing  ex- 
amples. When  Ottonelli  saw  it,  it  was  in  the  possession  of  a  certain 
Gottifredo  Periberti,   having  previously  passed  through  the  hands  of 

'  It pittor  dcllc  grasic,  quoted  above.  Venturi  has  treated  tliis  picture  most  exhaustively 
in  his  study,  Un  quadro  del  Correggio  (Modenn,  18S2),  reprinted  in  the  periodical,  Arte  e 
Storia,  year  iii.  no.  3.     Florence,  1894.  -  Mengs,  Opere,  ii.  p.  150. 

'^  Odomenigico  Lelonotti  (an  anagram  of  his  name),  Trattato  delta  pittura  e  sciiltura 
uso  e  abuso  loro,  composto  da  un  teotogo  e  da  un  pit  tore,  p.  155.  Florence,  1652. 
Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  128. 


rilF,    MADONXA    DEL    LATTE  177 

the  Aklobrandini  family,  of  the  Princess  Rossano,  one  of  their  heirs, 
and  of  Cardinal  di  San  Giorgio.  Padre  Resta,  in  his  Indicc  del 
Parnaso  dci  pittori}  boasting  of  having  once  owned  the  original 
drawing,  says  that  the  picture,  formerly  in  the  possession  of  Muzio 
Orsini,  had  been  acquired  by  the  Marchese  del  Carpio,  and  that  there 
was  also  a  replica  in  "an  ancient  Roman  house."  His  statement  as 
to  the  Marchese 
del  Carpio's  pos- 
session of  such  a 
picture  is  borne 
out  by  an  engrav- 
ing by  Teresa  del 
Po.-  No  authen- 
tic information  has 
come  down  to  us 
as  to  the  fate  of 
the  replica,  unless 
indeed  it  is  to  be 
identified  with  the 
picture  Miindler 
saw  in  Rome  in 
1844  in  the  pos- 
session of  a  cer- 
tain Count  Cabral, 
who  dealt  in  pic- 
tures with  the 
help    of    Prince 

Torlonia.«    As  we  p,  th.  s.:haii.  Bcrii,,. 

are  an.xious  not  to 

increase  the  confusion  that  already  prevails,  we  will  only  add  that  the 
two  most  famous  examples  which    lay   claim   to   authenticity  are  the 


^  P.  63.     Perugia,  1787. 

-  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.   128.     It  is  said   to  have   passed  into  Spain   and   afterwards   to 
England. 

■■  Meyer,  pp.  142  et  seq.  and  329  (t  seq. 

A   A 


I7S  ANTONIO    DA    rORREGGIO 

version  on  panel  in  the  Hermitage  at  St.  Petersburg,'  and  that  on 
canvas  in  the  Esterhazy  collection,  now  in  the  Public  Gallery  at  Buda- 
pest.- The  former,  according  to  Nagler,  belonged  to  a  King  of  Spain, 
whose  name  he  omits  to  mention.  The  king  presented  it  to  his  con- 
fessor, who  in  his  turn  handed  it  on  to  the  Jesuits.  It  came  to  Rome 
through  the  medium  of  its  new  owners,  and  was  bought  by  one  Cava- 
ceppi  (here  we  enter  into  the  domain  of  fact),  who  sold  it  again  to  the 
painter  Giovanni  Casanova,  brother  to  the  famous  adventurer,  for  a 
verv  small  price,  the  picture  being  in  a  terribly  dirty  state,  covered 
with  dust  and  varnish.  Casanova  cleaned  it  skilfully,  and  exhibited 
it  as  a  discovery.  The  matter  attracted  a  good  deal  of  attention  in 
the  art-world.  Mengs  mentioned  it,  among  others,'  and  Winckelmann, 
who  wrote  thus  in  his  journal  of  July  i6,  1764  :  "Casanova  has  dis- 
covered a  picture  by  Correggio  at  Rome,  which  no  one  had  recognised, 
as  it  was  covered  with  dirt.  He  bought  it  and  cleaned  it,  thus  becoming 
the  owner  of  one  of  the  most  beautiful  pictures  in  the  world.  He  goes 
to  Dresden  next  month."  ^  This,  in  fact,  he  did,  having  been  ap- 
pointed Director  of  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts.  Nagler  further  says 
that  Mengs  bought  the  picture  from  him  for  Catherine  II.  of  Russia. 

Meyer  considered  the  whole  of  this  story  apocryphal,  especially  as 
Mengs  was  no  longer  in  Dresden  after  1760;  he  admits,  of  course, 
that  the  bargain  might  have  been  concluded  by  letter  or  by  the  inter- 
mediary of  other  persons,  but  thinks  it  more  likely,  on  the  whole,  that 
the  picture  discovered  by  Casanova  was  the  example  now  in  the  Buda- 
pest Gallery,  as  the  presence  of  the  angel  in  the  place  of  the  little  St. 
John  seems  to  indicate.  In  which  case,  the  history  formerly  ascribed 
to  the  Budapest  picture  would  really  be  that  of  the  St.  Petersburg 
example,  and  it  would  be  the  latter  which  passed  to  the  Duca  Crivclli 
with  other  property  inherited  from  his  uncle,  the  cardinal,  who  had 
received  it  as  a  gift  from  Charles  I\'.  of  Spain.  Waagen,  indeed, 
asserts  that  the  St.  Petersburg  pictm-e  came  from  Charles  IV.'s 
collection.      It  is  impossible,  however,  to  come  to  any  very  decided 

1  Waagen,  Die  Gemaldc-Sammliiii:-  in  da-  Ennita;^c  zii  St.  rckrshiiri;.     i\[unicli,  1864. 

-  Karoly  Pulszky,  A  Kcps:yiijtcmi-ny  /•■iiv  lajstroma,  ]).  7.     Budaiiest,  188S. 

^  Opere,  ii.  p.  176. 

■'  Fii;iiriiii:  Casancviane.     Niiova  Rassegna,  year  i.  no.  7.     Rome. 


SKETCHES    r>V    CORRKGGIO    AT    VIENNA  .79 

conclusion  In  the  matter,  owing  to  the  peregrinations  of  both  these 
pictures,  the  absence  of  any  authentic  records  of  their  history,  and, 
above  all,  to  the  multiplication  of  copies,  the  existence  of  which  is 
attested  by  a  large  number  of  engravings,  many  of  them  showing 
considerable  variations.  In  the  matter  of  their  authenticity  opinions 
are  pretty  equally  divided.  We  have  seen  that  at  Budapest  twice. 
It  has  suffered  a  little,  but  we  are  certainly  inclined  to  ascribe  it  to 
the  master,  relying  on  such  evidences  as  the  fine  drawing,  the  delicate 
-diffusion  of  the  light,  the  soft  blending  of  light  and  shadow,  the  facial 
types,  and  the  calm,  yet  joyful,  sentiment  that  pervades  the  com- 
position. On  the  other  hand,  we  have  not  found  the  study  of  a  large 
and  magnificent  photograph  by  Braun  of  the  St.  Petersburg  picture 
altogether  convincing.  In  the  nude  contours  of  the  Infant  Jesus  there 
is  a  somewhat  painful  contortion  of  lines  ;  his  left  foot  is  preternaturally 
small,  and  the  chiaroscuro  of  the  legs  is  very  laboured.  The  type  of 
the  Madonna  is  not  altogether  Correggesque  ;  her  nose  is  too  broad 
above,  at  the  junction  of  the  eyebrows,  and  the  nostril  is  too  much 
arched.  Her  smile  is  almost  a  grimace.  Not  having  seen  the 
original,  we  refrain  from  any  decisive  pronouncement  on  the  merits 
of  this  picture,  and  will  be  content  to  say  that  Meyer  did  not  venture 
to  vouch  for  its  authenticity. 

A  fact  hitherto  unnoticed  must,  however,  be  admitted  to  have  an 
important  bearing  on  the  case.  The  pen  sketch  in  which  Correggio 
jotted  down  his  first  thought  for  this  picture  is  still  in  existence,  and 
here  the  little  figure  offering  the  fruit  Is  not  the  infant  St.  John,  as  In 
the  picture  at  the  Hermitage,  but  a  winged  angel,  as  in  the  canvas  at 
Budapest. 

This  precious  drawing,  the  property  of  the  Vienna  Museum,  is  on 
a  sheet  covered  with  a  variety  of  figures,  all  rapidly  and  freely 
sketched,  and  raises  another  interesting  point.  Besides  a  number  of 
groups  which  the  painter  either  never  used,  or  used  in  ])ictures  now 
lost,  the  sheet  contains  the  germ  of  the  St.  Joseph  at  work  In  the 
little  picture  of  the  Uladoiiua  dclla  Ccsta.  The  sketch  confirms,  to  a 
certain  extent,  the  almost  unanimous  opinion  of  critics  that  this  was 
painted  at  about  the  same  date  as  the  Madonna  del  Laitc.      If  we  take 

A  A  2 


I  So  ANTONIO    DA   CORRECiGlO 

the  Budapest  example  for  purposes  of  comparison,  we  shall  find  that 
here  and  in  the  National  Gallery  picture  the  types  of  Virgin  and 
Child,  the  play  of  the  drapery,  which  begins  to  be  treated  more 
squarely,  the  gradations  of  tone,  and  the  management  of  the  light,  are 
practically  identical.  The  master's  pictorial  faculty  displays  itself  most 
characteristically  in  the  very  individual  sentiment,  design,  and  colour. 


<•«■: 


.he  Vi^iili^  Mu.euiu. 


The  Madonna,  seated  with  her  Child  upon  her  lap,  and  St.  Joseph, 
planing  a  piece  of  wood,  appear  in  a  beautiful  setting  of  trees  and 
anticjue  ruins.  The  Virgin,  whose  work-basket  and  other  feminine 
implements  lie  at  her  feet,  endeavours  to  draw  on  the  Infant's  little 
dress.  She  has  put  one  arm  through  a  sleeve,  but  the  Child  struggles 
vigorously  under  the  maternal  hands,  disarranging  his  shirt.  Mary 
smiles  softly,  as  if  admonishing  the  IJabe  with  a  gentle  "  My  son,  let 
me  dress   thee  !  " 


Madonna  delLi  Cesta. 


THE    BIANCONI    MADONNA 


This  little  gem  of  extraordinary  tenderness,  as  INIengs  calls  it,' 
this  incomparable  marvel  of  light,  of  vivacity,  of  smiling  sweetness, 
to  quote  r>izzoni,-  was  given  by  Charles  IV.  of  Spain  to  his 
master,  Don  Emanuele  Goday,  at  whose  instance  it  was  subjected 
to  a  most  rigorous  cleaning.  During  the  French  invasion  of 
Spain  it  passed  to  the  English  painter  Wallace,  who  vainly  attempted 
to  sell  it  in  1S13  for  ;^i,:ioo.  It  figured,  nevertheless,  in  the  La- 
peyriere  collection  in  April,  iS25,when  this  was  put  up  for  sale,  and 
was  bought  by  the  elder  Nieu- 
wenhuys,  who  immediately  after- 
wards sold  it  to  the  National 
Gallery  of  London.  Such  is 
Meyer's  account  of  the  picture.'' 
Sir  Frederick  Burton  gives  its 
history  with  certain  variations 
and  greater  simplicity  in  his 
catalogue  of  the  gallery,  saying 
that  it  was  brought  to  Eng- 
land by  Mr.  Buchanan  in  1S13, 
and  bought  for  the  National 
Gallery  by  C.  F.  Nieuwenhuys 
in  1S25.1 

This,  according  to  some 
writers,  is  the  picture  which 
Vasari    describes   as   in    the   pos-  Fro,.,  u.e  Engravhis. 

session  of  the  Cavaliere   Baiardi 

of  Parma — "a  marvellous  and  beautiful  work  by  Correggio,  in  which 
our  Lady  puts  a  little  shirt  on  the  Infant  Christ."  ^  Others,  however, 
suppose  this  to  allude  to  the  little  picture  of  which  the  Abbe  Carlo 
Bianconi,  secretary  to  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts  at  Milan,  declared 
he  possessed   a  sketch  on    paper,   which  he  asserted  had    once  formed 

^   Opere,  ii.  jx  177.     Punyilconi,  i.  p.  1 1 1. 
^  Arte  italiana  Jcl  Rinascimento,  pp.  356-357. 
3  Correggio,  pp.  138  and  326. 

*  Descriptive  and  liistoriail  Catalogue  of  the  Pieti/res  in  tlie  National  Gallery,  p.   6. 
London,  1892.  ''    ?'//.•,  vi.  [).  477. 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREOGIO 


part  of  the  Estense  Gallery.^  There  are  copies  and  engravings  of 
such  a  picture,  but  the  original  is  missing.  It  represented  the 
Madonna  seated  on  the  ground,  in  the  act  of  drawing  on  the  little 
shirt,  and  St.  Joseph  offering  cherries  to  the  Child.  The  types  and 
composition  are  very  Correggesque,  as  far  as  we  can  judge  by  the 
engravings,  but  it  is  impossible  to  give  a  decisive  opinion  on  such 
evidence. 

In   curious  contrast  to   the   facility   with    which   the  most  unlikely 

works  have  been  as- 
signed to  the  master, 
the  authenticity  of  cer- 
tain pictures  unques- 
tionably by  his  hand 
has  been  repeatedly 
attacked  and  called  in 
cjuestion.  The  most 
hotly  contested  of  these 
examples  at  one  time 
was  the  J^irgin  cu/cw- 
iiig  I  he  III  fa  lit  Christ, 
which  was  given  by 
the  Duke  of  Modena 
to  Cosimo  II.  de' 
In  the  louvr.  Medici,  and   has   been 

in  the  Uftizi  since 
1617.-  Mengs,  probably  without  any  such  intention,  seems  to 
have  prepared  the  way  for  later  assailants  by  pointing  out  what  he 
considered  a  deficiency  of  the  power  usual  in  Correggio's  works, 
and  a  carelessness  in  the  composition,  and  in  the  treatment  of  the 
draperies.^  Meyer,  in  his  turn,  admitted  a  certain  meticulous  and 
artificial  quality  in  the  execution,  and  an  excessive  softness  in  the 
colour,  Ijut  recognised   the  master's  hand,  notably  in   the  lively  action. 

'  I'iraboschi,  vi.  pp.  285-2S6.   Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  155.   M.  A.  Oualandi,  JA-wc/vV  w^v'wf?// 
italiane,  series  ii.  \i.  171. 

2  Vasari,  Vile,  iv.  p.  18,  n.  i.  ■''  O/^eie,  ii.  j).  173. 


The  Adoration  of  the    Virgin. 


illi;    MADONNA    1)I:LI.A    CI-.STA  183 

The  Virgin,  kneeling  on  ;i  step,  raises  her  hands  witli  a  gesture  of 
adoration  over  the  Babe,  who  hes  before  her  on  a  linen  cloth 
laid  over  a  bundle  of  straw.  The  light  is  concentrated  chielly  on  the 
radiant  little  liody  of  the  naked  Child,  and  the  head  and  hands  of 
the  Madonna,  but  there  is  a  want  of  fusion  and  equality  in  the 
gradations  of  her  head.  The  folds  of  the  draperies  are  broadly  treated, 
but  betray  a  certain  amount  of  effort,  and  the  chord  of  colour  struck  by 
the  red  robe,  the  blue  mantle,  and  its  pale  green  lining,  docs  not  vibrate 
in  perfect  harmony.  The  colour,  indeed,  is  the  weak  point  in  this 
picture,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  the  composition  and  action  are  al- 
together delightful  !  The  Babe  (a  masterly  essay  in  foreshortening) 
reveals  his  instinctive  emotion  in  the  agitated  gesture  of  the  little 
arm  he  stretches  out  to  his  mother,  while  she,  hanging  over  him, 
unclasps  her  exquisitely  rendered  hands,  which  seem  to  exclaim 
even  more  eloquently  than  her  face  :  "  Is  there  anything  in  all  the 
world  so  beautiful  ?  " 

The  background,  though  a  little  chilly  as  opposed  to  the  warm 
tones  of  the  Virgin's  figure,  is  very  original  in  conception.  The  scene 
is  laid  in  a  ruined  temple,  with  a  large  column  to  the  left,  at  the  base 
of  which  a  heap  of  wood  is  piled.  To  the  right  are  the  crumbling 
remains  of  a  flight  of  steps,  between  the  shattered  stones  of  which 
grasses  and  plants  have  sprung  up.  Beyond  stretches  a  vaporous 
background  of  hills,  and  trees,  among  them  the  flexible  stem  of  a  tall 
palm  that  swa\'s  in  the  wind.  Although  the  tone  of  the  picture  has 
lowered  a  good  deal  in  parts,  destroying  the  general  harmony  to  a 
great  extent,  it  must  be  admitted  that  it  was  one  of  the  master's  least 
pleasing  essays  in  colour  from  the  beginning.  He  seems  to  have 
aimed  at  rendering  a  certain  eftect  of  morning  light  which  he  failed  to 
carry  out  altogether  successfully. 

But,  as  Horace  reminds  us:  "  Ouandoque  bonus  dormitat 
Homerus." 


,  di  San  Paolo  at  Parma, 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE    FRESCOES    IN    SAN    GIOVANNI    EVANGELISTA 

THE    CHURCH    AND    MONASTERY— CORREGCIO   RECEIVES  THE  COMMISSION— THE  SIEGE 
OF    PARMA — THE    FRESCOES    OF    THE    DOME    AND    APSE — DECORATIONS    OF    THE    NAVE 

THE     LUNETTE     OF     ST.     JOHN — "  SS.     PLACIDUS     AND     FLAVIA  " "  THE     DESCENT 

FROM    THE    CROSS  " 

OU  R  painter  returned  to 
Parma  in  the  spring  of 
1520.  It  is  very  prob- 
able that,  knowing  he  would 
have  to  spend  a  considerable 
time  in  the  city,  working  for  the 
Benedictines,  and  missing  the 
pleasant  intercourse  of  his  home 
and  family,  he  pressed  on  the 
marriage  already  arranged.  His 
wife  was  one  Girolama  Merlini, 
born  early  in  1503,  and  conse- 
quently, a  girl  of  barely  seven- 
teen when  she  married  Correggio. 


CORREGGIO'S    MARRIAGE  185 

She  was  the  daughter  of  Bartolomeo  Merlnii  dc  Bragliclis,  who 
died  seven  months  after  her  birth,  and  of  Antonia  Bellesia,  a  member 
of  a  weahhy  country  family.  Pungileoni  was  much  exercised  by 
the  fact  that  in  June,  15 18,  she  made  a  will,  leaving  her  pro- 
perty to  her  uncle  and  aunt,  Giovanni  and  Lucia  Merlini.^  The 
natural  inference  seems  to  be  that  she  was  in  delicate  health,  an 
assumption  which  is  further  supported  by  her  early  death  in  1529, 
Nothing  is  known  of  her  beyond  these  meagre  details.  We  may 
therefore  pass  over  the  romantic  flights  of  those  who  have  expatiated 
on  the  beauty  of  her  person  and  the  goodness  of  her  heart.  The 
attractive  type  of  the  Madonnas  painted  by  Correggio  after  15 18  is 
the  sole  indication  we  possess  that  love  had  influenced  the  painter's 
choice  on  the  one  hand,  and  inspired  the  ideal  sweetness  of  the  face  he 
immortalised  on  the  other.- 

Why  Pungileoni's  assertion  that  the  marriage  took  place  in  1520 
has  been  disputed  we  cannot  understand.  It  is  known  that  on  July 
26,  1 52 1,  Correggio  received  the  dowry  of  251  ducats  assigned  to 
Girolama,  already  his  icifc.  A  more  conclusive  evidence  still  (unless 
we  make  the  perfectly  groundless  assumption  that  there  had  been  some 
misconduct  before  the  marriage,  or  that  the  first  child  was  born 
prematurely)  is  to  be  found  in  the  birth -certificate  of  Correggio's  eldest 
son,  Pomponio,  who  was  born  September  3,  1521.  The  parents  must 
therefore  have  married  before  the  end  of  1520. 

Besides  this  son,  of  whom  we  shall  have  more  to  say  later, 
Correggio's  wife  bore  him  three  daughters  :  Francesca  Letizia,  born 
December  6,  1524  ;  Caterina  Lucrezia,  born  September  24,  1526  ;  and 
Anna  Geria,  born  rather  more  than  a  year  afterwards.''  The  two 
latter  died  in  infancy  ;  the  first  became  the  wife  of  Pompeo  Brunorio, 
and  lived  to  a  fairly  advanced  age. 

1  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  105  ;  ii.  pp.  150-15 1.  Magnanini,  pp.  58  and  61.  The  brothers, 
Bartolomeo  and  Giovanni  Merlini,  married  two  sisters,  Antonia  and  Lucia  Bellesia. 

2  The  following  note  occurs  in  the  Inventory  of  the  Farnese  collection,  compiled 
about  1680  :  "A  woman  seated  on  a  Roman  chair,  in  a  white  dress,  with  a  black  over- 
dress, and  yellow  and  black  sleeves ;  she  rests  her  right  hand  on  the  arm  of  the  chair, 
and  holds  a  book  in  her  left.  Said  to  be  a  portrait  of  Correggio's  wife,  by  himself." 
The  statement  is  quite  without  foundation.    V.  G.  Campori,  Cataloghi  ed  invcntnri,  p.  297. 

*  Register  of  the  Baptistery  at  I'arma. 

13    B 


1 86  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

A  clerical  error  made  by  the  priest  who  on  October  5,  1527, 
registered  the  advent  of  Anna  Geria,  born  two  days  before,  gave  rise 
to  the  mistaken  idea  that  Correggio  had  by  this  time  lost  his  first  wife 
and  taken  a  second.  Inscribing  the  name  of  the  mother,  the  priest 
wrote  Jacobina  instead  of  Girolama.  On  this  Mengs,^  and  his  ob- 
sequious follower.  Carlo  Giuseppe  Ratti,"  founded  the  theory  of  a 
second  marriage.  Ratti,  indeed,  improved  on  the  original  statement. 
He  says  that  the  painter,  "having  lost  his  first  wife,  took  a  second, 
seduced  by  her  beauty,  which  he  afterwards  learnt  to  loathe."  If  we 
also  accept  the  statements  of  Father  Maurizio  Zappata,  who  created  a 
Girolama,  daughter  of  Pier  Ilario  Mazzola,  to  marry  her  to  Correggio,^ 
our  painter  figures  almost  as  a  rival  of  Mahomet  II.  All  these  fables 
were  discredited  by  the  discovery  of  a  document  dated  March  20, 
1 5 28,  in  which  Girolama  Merlini  is  mentioned  as  still  living.  The 
document  is  a  deed  empowering  the  painter's  father,  Pellegrino  Allegri, 
to  administer  the  goods  of  his  son  and  his  daughter-in-law  ■*  during 
their  absence  from  Correggio. 

Externally,  the  church  and  monastery  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista 
are  far  from  imposing.  The  fagade  of  the  church,  which  was  finished  in 
the  early  years  of  the  seventeenth  century,  is  unpleasing.  The  side 
of  the  convent,  which  adjoins  it,  is  covered  with  baroque  ornament,  and 
has  a  heavy,  loaded  appearance  ;  the  other  walls  are  bare  and  squalid. 
But,  like  a  shell  of  mother-of-pearl  just  drawn  from  the  sea,  this  coarse 
and  heavy  exterior  hides  a  miracle  of  line  and  colour.  Within  the 
monastery,  cloisters  and  rooms  are  covered  with  a  rich  emliroidery 
of  painted  and  sculptured  decoration.  The  aisles  of  the  church  soar 
into  space  from  pillars,  the  fluted  columns  of  which  terminate  below  in 
carved  and  painted  inscriptions  ;  the  capitals  seem  to  unfold  their 
calices  like  flowers,  in  clusters  of  rich  and  graceful  foliation  ;  the  choir- 
stalls  are  magnificently  carved  and  inlaid  ;  the  ribbing  of  the  vaults,  the 
friezes,  the  chapels,  the  altars,  the  cupolas,  the  tribune,  all  gleam  with 
gilded  and  painted  reliefs.      Not  a  corner  has  escaped  the  decorative 

1   Opere,  ii.  p.  137.  -   Op.  at.  p.  7j8. 

■'  See  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  242.     runi,'ileoni,  ii.  p.  S. 
■'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  242.     I'lingilconi,  i.  p.  200  ct  scq. 


THE    ^rONASTERV    OF   SAN    GIOVANNI    EVANGELISTA  1S7 

ardour  of  those  who  planned  and  those  who  carried  out  the  work  ; 
a  glorious  band  of  artists  laboured  here  for  half  a  century  to  satisfy  the 
devout  ambition  of  the  Benedictines. 

It  appears  from  documents  in  the  monastic  archives  which  lie 
before  us,  that  the  brethren  gave  themselves  up  with  almost  feverish 
energy  to  the  reconstruction  and  embellishment  of  their  buildings 
during  the  last  twenty  years  of  the  fifteenth  century.  They  were 
evidently  bent  on  making  their  monastery  equal  to  the  most  magni- 
ficent of  such  structures.  Artists  from  Como,  Reggio,  and  Pontremoli 
worked  under  their  direction,  while  Antonio  d'  Agrate  wove  a  network 
of  pillars  in  the  cloisters,  and  covered  doors  and  windows  with  sculp- 
tured ornament.  Meanwhile  Guglielmo  of  Tolosa  cast  new  bells. 
Master  Damiano  carved  chests  to  contain  "  the  vestments  of  cloth  of 
gold,"  Damiano  da  Moile  illuminated  and  bound  the  beautiful  choir- 
books,  Antonio  and  Gian  Giacomo  da  Berceto  embroidered  copes  and 
chasubles,  Jacopo  Loschi  painted  banners,  and  Master  Alessio  a  variety 
of  altar-pieces. 

All  this  activity  increased  rather  than  diminished  with  the  dawH  of 
the  new  century.  One  Giovanni,  a  potter,  modelled  the  terra-cotta 
cornice  ;  Master  Guglielmo,  a  German,  painted  the  glass  for  the 
windows  ;  Cesare  da  Reggio  decorated  the  vault  of  the  sacristy. 
Meanwhile  the  plans  for  enlarging  the  church  were  drawn  out.  Before 
this  undertaking  had  been  entrusted  to  him  (15  10),  Master  Bernardino 
da  Torchiara  had  proved  himself  an  architect  of  parts  in  other  works 
of  importance.  Scarcely  had  he  and  Pietro  Cavazzolo  begun  their 
task  when  some  of  the  leading  families  of  the  city  offered  contributions, 
or  bought  chapels  as  yet  unfinished.  The  work  went  on  apace. 
Antonio  d'  Agrate  continued  to  carve  the  more  delicate  ornament 
himself,  at  the  same  time  directing  a  troop  of  craftsmen,  whose  noisy 
hammers  scaled  and  chipped  the  rough  stone  into  the  form  of  huge 
columns,  cornices,  pilasters,  and  altars  within  the  church,  and  well- 
heads and  fountains  in  the  cloisters. 

The  intense  an.\iety  of  the  Ijcnedictines  to  see  the  work  completed 
showed  itself  in  the  rapidity  with  which  the  various  operations  were 
carried  out.     While  as  yet   the   interior   of  the  church  was  a  perfect 


1 88  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

forest  of  beams,  scaffoldings,  and  cords,  the  decorators  began  their 
work.  Cesare  da  Reggio  commenced,  perhaps,  on  the  frieze  of  the 
transept,  Pietro  Ilario  and  Michele  Mazzola  frescoed  the  chapel  of  the 
Zangrandi  with  compositions  which  have  now  disappeared,  and  finally 
Marc'  Antonio  Zucchi,  "master  of  perspective,"  carved  and  inlaid  the 
choir  stalls.^ 

The    monastery    has    been    turned    into    a    barrack,  and    presents 
a  melancholy  spectacle  !     Rain,  hail,  and  wind  have  worked   their  will 


on  the  phantom  remnants  of  painting  and  sculpture,  hardly  sparing 
even  the  marble  reliefs  of  the  door  and  windows  of  the  chapter-house, 
carved  with  all  the  delicacy  of  antique  cameos.  The  crumbling  well 
is  overgrown  with  moss  ;  a  feeble  thread  of  water  trickles  from  the 

'  We  have  carefully  e.xamined  the  books  and  papers  of  the  archives  of  San  Giovanni 
Evangelista,  now  in  the  Palatine  Library  at  Parma.  Many  of  the  artists  mentioned  in 
these  arc  also  spoken  of  in  Angelo  Pezzana's  Storia  di  Farma.     Parma,  1837-1839. 


THE    CHURCH    OK   SAN    C.IOVANNl    ]■  VANGELIS'l'A 


189 


fountain  ;  the  ruined  arches  are  propped  here  and  there  with  rough 
wooden  piles.  The  harsh  sound  of  the  bugle,  and  the  loud  voices 
of  soldiers  ring  through  the  vaulted  cloisters  which  once  echoed 
to  the  chant  of  orisons,  and  the  swell  of  an  organ  touched  by 
Polidoro  or  Domenico  della  Musa.  The  frescoes  of  the  corridors, 
cells,  and  great  halls  are  hidden  under  a  lavish  coat  of  whitewash, 
and  the  elegant  librarj^  decorated  with  grotesques  by  Ercole  Pio  and 
Antonio  Paganino  vainly  waits  to  be  delivered  from  the  vile  uses  of  a 
magazine,  and  restored  to  its  ancient  dignity. 

The  church  has  fortunately  suffered  less  severely.  Time  has 
dimmed  the  lustre  of 
the  gilded  ornaments 
and  paintings  ;  the 
chapel  altars  have  been 
despoiled  of  many 
famous  works  by  Cor- 
reggio  and  Francia, 
but  the  structure  has 
been  well  preserved  by 
the  care  of  the  muni- 
cipality, the  govern- 
ment, and  those  who 
worship  within  its  walls, 
and    still    arouses    the 

In  the  Vienna  Museum. 

wonder     and     admira- 
tion of  visitors  who  come  to  see  its  frescoes  by  Allegri,  Parmigianino, 
and    Rondani,    its    pictures    by    Temperclli,    Anselmi,    and    Girolamo 
Mazzola-Bedoli,  and   its   precious   terra-cottas    by    Antonio    Begarelli, 
formerly  in  the  monastery. 

The  building  operations  were  finished  in  15 19,  and  Bernardino  da 
Torchiara  then  proceeded  to  plaster  the  walls  of  the  nave  and  the 
cupola. 

When  did  Correggio  begin  to  work  in  the  church  ?  It  appears 
from  the  account-books  of  the  monastery  still  extant,  that  no  payments 
were   made   to    him   before   July   6,    1520.     On   this  date  thirty  gold 


I  go  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGOIO 

ducats  were  handed  over  to  him,  "  being  the  first  payment  for  the 
painting  of  the  cupola."  ^  The  monl<s  had  agreed  to  give  him  by 
instalments  a  sum  amounting  altogether  to  a  hundred  and  thirty  gold 
ducats,  the  price  for  which  he  had  stipulated. 

The  details  of  further  work  are  indicated  in  subsequent  entries. 
We  find  from  these  that  the  artist  engaged  to  decorate  the  tribune  of 
the  apse  for  sixty-five  ducats  ;  to  gild  the  frieze  and  cornices,  or  cause 
them  to  be  gilded,  for  five  ducats  ;  -  to  ornament  the  pillars  sup- 
porting the  cupola,  and  the  candelabra  beneath,  for  six  ducats  ;  finally, 
to  paint  the  frieze  running  round  the  body  of  the  cJuircIi  {i.e.,  the 
nave,  with  the  pillars,  the  archivolts,  and  a//  other  spaces)  for  sixty-six 
ducats,  as  agreed  with  Father  Basilio  on  the  Feast  of  All  Saints, 
1522.  The  total  expense  incurred  by  the  Benedictines  for  the  frescoes 
amounted,  therefore,  to  two  hundred  and  sixty-two  ducats. 

In  the  account  of  payments  made  from  time  to  time,  which  appears 
on  the  opposite  page,  we  find  that  Correggio  received  six  ducats,  in 
April,  152  I,  together  with  a  colt  worth  eight  ducats.  Other  disburse- 
ments follow  in  1522,  between  April  18  and  May  19,  and  between 
May  28  and  July  28.  In  1523  he  obtained  further  payments  on 
January  20,  March  13,  and  June  8.  Finally,  in  1524,  he  was  paid 
twenty-five  ducats  on  January  4,  and  the  last  twenty-seven  a  few 
days  after,  upon  which  he  gave  a  formal  receipt  for  all  sums  due 
to  him,  as  follows  :  "  I,  Antonio  Lieto  of  Correggio,  painter,  have,  on 
this  23rd  day  of  January,  1524,  received  from  Don  Giovanni  Maria  of 
Parma,  monk  and  cellarer  of  the  monastery  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista 
of  Parma,  twenty-seven  gold  ducats,  on  behalf  of  the  said  monastery, 
and  am  hereby  fully  paid  and  recompensed  for  my  paintings  in  the  said 
church,  and  I  therefore  declare  myself  to  be  contented  and  satisfied 
and  paid  in  full,  in   the  presence  of  Don  Onofrio,    monk  in   the   said 

1  Archives  of  S.in  Giovanni  Evangelista  at  P.irma,  preserved  in  the  Palatine  Library. 
]jOok  306,  from  the  year  1519  to  1528;  fols.  85  and  SC.  See  also  fol.  1S9  of 
book  313. 

"  Pungileoni  (ii.  \)\i.  173-174),  Meyer  (p.  460),  and  others  read  the  words  in  the 
document  from  which  we  (juote  cupola  graphic,  instead  of  capcla  graride.  The  error  is  a 
serious  one,  tending,  as  it  does,  to  the  confusion  of  the  apse  with  the  cupola.  The  latter 
is  called  the  aiba  in  the  document 


FRESCO    ASCRIBED    TO    CORREGGIO  191 

monastery,  in  token  of  which  I  have  written  the  above  with  my  own 
hand."  1 

Among  all  the  works  described  we  find  no  mention  of  the  lunette 
with  St.  John  writing  the  Apocalypse,  nor  of  the  two  canvases  of  the 
Descent  from  tlie  Cross,  and  the  RIartyrdoin  of  St.  Plaeidns,  to  which 
we  shall  return  presently,  nor  of  certain  vanished  frescoes  attributed  to 
the  painter  by  various  writers. 

Pungileoni,-  relying  on  the  assertion  of  Father  Mazza  (derived  in 
the  first  instance  from  Tiraboschi/^  and  unsupported  by  any  docu- 
mentary evidence)  believed  Correggio  to  have  worked  in  the  monastery 
in  1519,  and  accepted  the  opinion  of  Casapini,  who  attributed  to 
him  the  fresco  of  the  small  dome  in  the  dormitory,  representing  the 
apotheosis  of  St.  Benedict.  There  was  somewhat  more  plausibility 
in  the  ascription  to  the  master  of  a  decoration  of  children  and  foliage 
painted  in  a  niche  near  the  garden  of  the  novices,  which  Meyer 
thought  might  be  the  work  of  some  scholar  of  Correggio's.''  The 
genii  in  monochrome  on  the  sofiit  of  the  arch  are  certainly  not  by 
the  master.  They  are  ill-drawn,  and  awkwardly  posed  ;  but  it  is  not 
so  certain  that  he  did  not  paint  those  in  the  interior  of  the  niche, 
who  are  frolicking  in  a  INIantegnesque  trellis-work  of  foliage.  The 
foreshortenings  are  bold  and  confident,  the  little  bodies  plump  and 
sturdy,  the  eyes  sparkle,  the  faces  beam  with  smiles.  The  head  of  the 
baby  who  looks  up  to  the  right  is  very  Correggesque.  The  fresco 
has  been  cruelly  re-touched,  and  is  now  so  begrimed  with  dirt  that  it 
would  have  to  be  cleaned  before  it  would  be  possible  to  give  a  decisive 
opinion  as  to  its  authorship. 

Father  Baistrocchi  relates  that  while  Allegri  was  painting  at  Parma, 
he  and  his  pupil  Rondani  were  summoned  to  the  wealthy  abbey  oi 
Torchiara,  for  which  ?slarc'  Antonio  Zucchi  also  made  some  valuable 
furniture,  now  preserved  in  the  Museum  of  Antiquities.      He  supports 

1  The  book  containing  this  receipt,  and  other  references  to  Correggio's  work,  has 
disappeared.  Fortunately,  however,  Pungileoni  transcribed  the  more  important  items. 
(Pungileoni,  ii.  pp.  170,  171.) 

"  Op.  cit.  i.  p.  go  ;  ii.  p.  126.  •'   Op.  cit.  vi.  p.  259. 

^  Meyer,  pp.  129  and  130.  Ratti's  statement  that  Correggio  was  at  Parma  as  a  lad, 
living  quasi  domestico  with  the  Benedictines,  is  purely  a  fable.     (Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  130.) 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


1? 


his  statement  as  follows  :  "  In  one  of  the  rooms  of  the  abbey,  that 
nearest  to  the  door  opening  on  to  the  cloister,  there  is  a  frieze,  very 
pleasingly  decorated,  with  children  leading  a  goat  to  the  sacrifice  ;  one 
holds  a  swallow  in  his  hand."^  This  frieze,  which  has  now  disappeared, 
was  afterwards  attributed  to  Rondani,^  and  it  is  not  improbable  that 
Correggio's  share  in  it  was  limited  to 
preparing  the  design  and  giving  some 
few  suggestions  to  his  disciple. 

The  frescoes  in  San  Giovanni  Evan- 
gelista  were  not  executed  with  that  de- 
spatch and  continuity  both  monks  and 
painter  had  hoped  for.  The  work  was 
hindered  by  various  domestic  troubles 
which  harassed  the  artist,  and  was 
further  interrupted  by  the  grave  politi- 
cal disasters,  which  burst  on  Parma  with 
all  the  devastating  violence  of  a  hurri- 
cane. 

When,  after  the  famous  battle  of 
Sc[jtember  13,  1515,  Francis  I.  annexed 
the  duchy  of  Milan,  Parma  and  Pia- 
cenza  also  fell  into  his  hands.  Leo  X. 
feigned  submission  at  first,  but  in  his 
'  '  '  ViV  llisVa"^  vrrvrMi''    '  hcart  he   was   by   no   means    reconciled 

to  the  loss  of  these  two  important 
cities.  In  152 1  he  entered  into  a  league  with  Charles  V.,  the 
Florentines,  and  the  Duke  of  Mantua,  on  the  understanding  that  he 
was  to  be  allowed  to  seize  the  two  cities,  and  take  Ferrara  from  the 
Estensi.  These  compacts  and  intrigues  were  not  so  discreetly  carried 
through,  but  that  Lautrec,  the  P>cnch  King's  Governor-General  in 
Lombardy,  got  wind  of  them.  He  at  once  increased  the  garrison  of 
Parma,  and  occupied  Busseto  and  Cristoforo  Pallavicino's  territory. 

1  Noti'^ic  dei  piftori,  &c.     MS.  no.  1106  in  the  Miscellanea  in  the  Talatinc  Libr.iry  at 
Parma.     Sec  the  biographies  of  Corrcggio  and  of  Rondani. 
-  I'ungileoni,  i.  p.  91  ;  ii.  pp.  130,  131. 


THE   SIEGE    OF    PAR^[A 


Prospero  Coloiina,  the  Condotticrc  of  the  allies,  promptly  advanced 
upon  Parma.  Towards  the  end  of  July  he  was  encamped  by  the 
bridge  over  the  Enza.  But  the  French  were  too  much  on  the  alert 
for  him  to  attempt  any  decisive  attack.  They  strengthened  their 
position  by  receiving  Federigo  Gonzaga,  Lord  of  Bozzolo,  into  the 
city,  with  five  thousand  Italian  foot-soldiers,  and  Tommaso  P'ois,  Lord 
of  Lescruns,  with  four  hundred  lances.  Baffled  in  their  attempt  upon 
Parma,  the  confederates  withdrew  the  bulk  of  their  forces  upon  Milan. 
Cremona  then  revolted  in  her  turn  against  the  French  dominion, 
compelling  all  the  royalists  to  hasten  thither  from  Parma.  .Scarcely 
had  they  left  the  city,  when  Vitello 
Vitelli,  with  a  small  body  of  pontif- 
ical troops,  came  by  on  his  way 
from  Modena  to  Piacenza.  The 
citizens  hailed  him  as  a  heaven- 
sent liberator,  destined  to  free 
them  from  the  French  tyranny, 
and  called  upon  him  to  enter  their 
town.  Thus  did  Parma  return  to 
the  Papal  See.  Francesco  Guicci- 
ardini  was  appointed  governor  for 
the  Pope,  and  sent  to  receive  the 
oath  of  allegiance  on  Leo's  behalf. 

But  the  troubles  were   not    yet 

over.      Federigo  Gonzaga,  finding 

the  way  closed  against  his  contemplated  return,  made  up  his  mind  to 

a  bold  stroke.      He  appeared   suddenly  before   the  walls  of  Parma  on 

December    20,    and    began    to    bombard    the    city.      The    Parmese 

were  filled  with  dismay  ;  but  for  the  courageous  exhortations  of  the 

governor,  they  would,  no  doubt,  have  surrendered. ^      But  the  memory 

of  past  misery,  and  the   example  of  the   little   garrison,  who   met   the 

1  Fr.  Guicciardini,  Storia  d'  Italia,  book  xiv.  chapters  ii.-iv.  Buenaventura  Angeli, 
Storia  di  Parma,  book  v.  pp.  482-510.  Parma  1591.  L.  A.  Muratori,  Annali  d'  Italia 
a/  1 52 1.  Amadio  Ronchini,  la  Stcccata  di  Parma,  and  Diploma  di  Cittadiimnza  a 
danno  dei  defensori  di  Parma  nd  1521.  {Atti  e  monoric  deila  R.  Deputazione  di  sioria 
patria  per  le  provincie  parmcmi,  i.  pji.  175-179  ;  viii.  p.  405  ei  scqi) 


194  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

assault  with  the  utmost  steadiness,  inspired  them  with  confidence,  and 
courage  followed  in  its  wake.  The  nobles,  the  populace,  the  clergy, 
the  very  women  flocked  to  the  walls,  and  fought  with  such  determined 
heroism  that  Federigo,  beaten  back,  and  dismayed  at  the  havoc 
wrought   among  his  followers,  fled  from  the  field. 

Correggio  was  not  in  Parma  while  these  events  were  taking  place. 
Those  who  have  supposed  him  to  have  returned  to  his  native  place 
"  to  escape  the  tumult  and  discomforts  of  the  siege  "  not  only  say  what 
is  false,  but  dishonour  his  memory.  Correggio  did  not  flee.  A 
comparison  of  dates  proves  that  he  was  in  his  native  place  at  the 
outbreak  of  the  war,  where  he  naturally  remained  until  its  conclusion. 

In  April,  1521,  he  received  certain  sums  of  money  and  a  colt  from 
the  Benedictines,  as  we  have  seen.  In  the  middle  of  May,  the  diploma 
of  affiliation  to,  and  spiritual  communion  with  the  brotherhood,  as 
a  lay  member  was  conferred  upon  him.  In  the  so-called  gracioics 
letter,  he  is  called  coirj^io  z'/ro  iiiaiiis/iv  Antonio  Lacto  dc  Corigia} 
In  July,  before  Prospero  Colonna  had  appeared  upon  the  banks  of  the 
Enza,  he  had  returned  to  his  native  city,  where,  as  we  know,  his 
wife's  dowry  was  formally  handed  over  to  liim  on  the  26th  day  of  the 
month.  His  son  Pomponio  was  born  there  on  September  3,  and 
there,  on  September  18,  he  released  F"rancesco  degli  Affarosi  from 
his  duties  as  his  representative  in  the  action  he  had  brought  against 
Romanello  degli  Aromani,  who  disputed  his  succession  to  the  property 
left  him  by  his  maternal  uncle  ;  on  November  8  he  was  one  of  the 
witnesses  to  a  deed  drawn  up  by  the  notary  Nicolu  Mazzucchl  ;  and 
finally,  on  December  10,  he  was  there  confirmed  in  the  possession 
of  his  uncle's  property  by  sentence  of  Sigismondo  Augustoni,  judge  of 
Correggio,  a  sentence  which  was  set  aside  by  the  other  judge, 
Ascanio  Merli,  who  dismissed  the  suit,  and  condemned  Allegri 
in  costs. - 

Towards  the  end  of  the  year,  peace  reigned  once  more  in  Parma, 
but  we  do  not  find  that  Allegri   returned  at   once  to  the   city.      It   is, 

^  'I'irabosclii,  vi.  p.  263. 

-  Pungilconi,  i.  p.  128  ;  ii.  pi).  150  and  167  ;  iii.  !>.  60.  Notes  in  tlie  Antonioli  M.S.S. 
in  the  archives  of  Correggio. 


SUPPOSED    AUTOCRAPH    OF   CORREGCilO 


indeed,  by  no  means  probable  that  he  would  have  gone  on  with  his 
paintings  throughout  the  winter  in  a  dark  church  like  that  of  San 
Giovanni,  -where  cold  and  damp  would  have  proved  serious  obstacles 
to  the  painter  of  frescoes.  We  have  seen  that  the  payments  made  by 
the  Benedictines  began  again  on  April  18,  1522,  and  continued  all  the 
summer.  This  year  was  one  of  great  activity  for  Correggio.  In  the 
autumn  he  received  two  important  commissions,  of  which  we  shall  speak 
more  fully  in  a  later  chapter.  These  were  the  Nativity  [La  A'ottc), 
which  took  him  to  Reggio  on  October  14,  and  the  frescoes  of  Parma 
Cathedral,  formally 
entrusted  to  him  on 
November  2.  It  is 
evident  that  the  work 
already  executed  for 
the  Benedictines  had 
excited  the  liveliest 
applause  and  expec- 
tation. Family  affairs 
called  him  back  to 
Correggio  early  in 
1523.      On  January 

26,      he        was       present  door   and  windows   in   the  CHAPTER-HOISE  of  SAN   GIOVANNI   EVANGELISTA, 

at  the  drawing  up  of 

the  deed,  by  which  certain  properties  were  divided  between  his  wife 
and  her  uncle,  Giovanni  Merlini.^  He  then  returned  to  the  tranquil 
activity  of  his  life  at  Parma,  where  he  seems  to  have  worked 
uninterruptedly  until    1525. 

In  the  communal  archives  at  Noveilara  there  is  a  letter  addressed 
to  Count  Alessandro  Gonzaga,  the  writer  of  which  begs  for  the  loan 
of  a  horse,  promising  to  return  it  promptly.  The  letter  is  dated 
"Correggio,  March  15,  1524,"  and  signed  by  a  certain  Antonio  da 
Correggio.  It  has  hitherto  been  accepted  without  question  as  the 
painter's  autograph,  and  figured  as  such  at  the  Correggio  Exhibition 
held  at  Parma  in  1894.     We  have  carefully  compared  the  letter  with 

^  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  239.     Pungikoni,  i.  p.  iSO.     Magnanini,  pp.  ico  and  iiS. 


196  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

two  authentic  autographs,  and  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  it 
was  not  written  by  Allegri,  but  by  some  namesake  of  his.  We  have 
already  pointed  out  the  probability  of  a  like  error  in  connection  with  a 
document  referring  to  a  certain  Antonio  da  Coi'irggio  who  was  at 
Carpi  in  15 12.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  in  neither  case 
can  the  Antonio  in  question  be  identified  with  Antonio  Bernieri,  the 
Correggese  miniature  painter,  who  was  only  eight  years  old  in  1524.' 
The    fact    that    the    similarity   of  names   nevertheless  caused   him    to 


'^ 


.-/fl'r'^^^t^*-'^-  /«-  >r^yy^'}hr^nj'r  ^i-i  ft^nkc   fi^rji* 


(      hi.-nri'yr.o    S^.   ^^r-'W  a-y^d^ 


be  confused  with  our  painter  at  a  later  date,  shows  how  easily  such  a 
mistake  may  have  arisen  in  the  case  of  some  other  Antonio  of  the 
same  city.  Who  the  person  was  who  borrowed  the  horse  from 
Gonzaga  of  Novellara  is  of  very  little  moment.  It  is  enough  for  us  to 
know  that  it  was  not  Correggio.  W'e  have  now  fixed  the  dates  of 
Allegri's  labours  at  this  period,  and  may  pass  on  to  a  consideration  of 
the  works  themselves. 

'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  pp.  301,  302,  and  327.      Pungilconi,  i.  p.  271  ;  ii.  pp.  246,  26S,  and 
271.     Higi,  Notizie  di  A.  .4.,  &c.,  pp.  71-7S. 


THE    FRESCOES    IN    SAN    C.IOVANXT    EVANOELISTA  197 

Dante,  describing  the  giants  of  the  ninth  circle,  the  upper  part  of 
their  bodies  rising  above  the  brink  of  the  abyss,  compares  them  to  the 
towers  flanking  the  enceinte  of  the  ancient  Sienese  fortress,  IMonte- 
reggione.     The  divine  poet's  metaphor  suggests  itself  at  once  to  the 


pfi^^^^^^te^..^/^^^H^ 

WgB  mk 

W^^B^ 

|^^^?^^^^^^^^*5^^^^^gHB^S^H 

mind  at  the  first  sight  of  the  cupola  of  the   Benedictine  church.     The 
spectator  repeats    he  lines  almost  unconsciously  : 

'•  Come  in   sulla  cerchia  tonda 
Montereggion  di  torri  si  corona  I 

The  colossal    figures    of    the  eleven    Apostles   are    seated    on    clouds 


198  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

around  the  dome,  in  groups  connected  by  tumultuous  bands  of  youthful 
angels.  The  Redeemer  soars  heavenwards  in  the  centre,  encircled  by 
a  glory  of  cherubs,  descending  in  regular  gradation  from  the  golden 
light  above.  Kneeling  in  an  attitude  of  awe  and  adoration,  the 
Evangelist  of  Patmos   gazes  upward  at   the  divine   vision. 

Such  is  the  solemn  simplicity  of  the  conception,  that  the  whole 
scheme  of  decoration  is  described  in  these  brief  lines.  But  the  various 
details  will  occupy  us  for  some  time.  Strong  in  his  mastery  of  form 
and  expression,  secure  in  the  magic  of  his  colour  and  the  poetry  of  his 
sentiment,  the  young  artist  of  twenty-six  cast  aside  the  limitations 
hitherto  imposed  on  painting,  and,  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  art, 
applied  a  single  composition  to  the  decoration  of  a  vast  concave 
surface.  Before  his  time,  painters  had  been  content  with  the  spaces 
assigned  them  by  architect  and  decorator  ;  they  had,  in  fact,  invoked 
their  aid,  dividing  vaults  and  domes  into  a  number  of  compartments, 
in  each  of  which  they  painted  a  complete  picture. 

But  how  could  the  awe  and  terror  of  Correggio's  conception  have 
been  expressed  in  the  narrow  limits  thus  marked  out  ?  How  could  he 
have  suggested  the  ecstatic  rapture  of  the  apocalyptic  vision  in  the 
ascetic  calm,  the  devout  immobility,  of  single  figures  ranged  in  a  line, 
each  in  its  own  setting  .'' 

The  aged  St.  John,  with  flashing  eyes,  and  beard  and  hair  "  as 
white  as  wool,"  is  on  the  summit  of  the  hill  of  Patmos,  meditating 
on  the  book  his  symbolic  eagle  bears  upon  its  outspread  wings.  His 
thoughts  are  of  the  Saviour,  and  of  his  brethren  the  Apostles  who  have 
gone  before  him.  He  alone  survives  of  the  heroes  who  received  the 
Messiah's  words,  and  carried  them  throughout  the  world.  Rapt  and 
contemplative,  thought  turns  to  vision  in  his  brain.  He  sees  them  all 
in  the  luminous  sky  above,  and,  falling  on  his  knees,  clasps  his  tremulous 
knotted  hands,  adoring  his  ascending  Lord.  Christ,  "  like  unto  a  son 
of  man,"  is  clothed  in  a  long  white  garment,  because  "  he  that  over- 
comcth  shall  be  clothed  in  white  raiment."  "  His  eyes  are  as  a  flame 
<jf  fire  ;  his  feet  like  unto  fine  brass,  as  if  they  burned  in  a  furnace  ; 
and  his  voice  as  the  sound  of  many  waters." 

The   heads  of  Christ   and  of  the   Evansfelist  have  certain   Mante- 


THE    FRESCOES    IN    SAN    GIOVANNI    EVANGELISTA  199 

gnesque  traits,  but  they  are  more  broadly  conceived  and  painted  than 
the  types  of  the  Vincenzan  master.  There  is  a  Hl<eness  between 
them,  though  one  is  fair  and  youthful,  the  other  a  hoary  old  man. 
The  one  Is  animated  with  the  serene  joy  of  victory  over  the  world 
and  death,  while  the  other  betrays  the  amazement  of  him  who  be- 
holds things  unspeakable.  The  figure  of  St.  John  is  badly  placed, 
however.        It    is  l)chind   the  spectator  when   he  looks  upward  at  the 


Saviour  from  the  supposed  point  of  sight,  and  as  the  feet  of  the  Evan- 
gelist rest  against  the  cornice,  his  figure  is  almost  entirely  concealed 
by  the  latter.  The  two  aged  Apostles  seated  on  the  clouds  above  St. 
John  are  brought  together,  in  a  sculpturesque  group,  by  the  inter- 
lacement of  their  arms,  and  by  the  folds  of  a  green  mantle  thrown 
across  their  legs.  The  youthful  angel  with  uplifted  left  arm  above 
them  forms  part  of  the  composition.     To  the  left  of  the  group,  seated 


20O  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGCxIO 

on,  or  emerging  from  the  clouds,  are  three  robust  and  joyous  cherubs. 
The  whole  figure  of  one  of  the  three  appears,  a  beautiful  study, 
remarkable  for  the  novelty  of  the  pose,  and  the  radiant  satisfaction  of 
the  face. 

The  next  Apostle  leans  forward  to  look  at  his  two  companions, 
but  his  right  arm  is  bent  behind  him,  and  touches  the  legs  of  a  fourth 
saint.      By  this  expedient,  and  the  genial  intervention  of  a  cherub,  seen 


the  Cupola  of  San  Gu 


r    CORREGGIO. 


from  behind,  who  attempts  to  make  his  way  between  them,  the  painter 
masks,  as  it  were,  the  isolation  of  this  grand  figure.  The  Apostles 
round  the  dome  are  eleven  in  number  ;  representing  them  in  groups  of 
two,  the  painter  was  obliged  to  leave  one  figure  in  solitude.  The  third 
was  the  one  selected.  The  yellowish  mantle  which  covers  his  knees 
swirls  in  broad  folds  among  the  clouds  below,  to  the  great  delight  of  an 
urchin  with  long  fair  curls,  who  has  planted  himself  upon  it,  and  holds 


THE    FRESCOES    IX    SAN    GIOVAXXI    EVAXCIEI.IS'IA  201 

on  to  it  with  both  hands.  The  dark  figure  next  in  order  stands  out 
ao-alnst  a  Hght  background.  His  luxuriant  hair  and  beard  arc  of  a 
warm  chestnut  colour.  He  looks  straight  in  front  of  him,  pointing 
with  his  right  hand  to  St.  John.  An  angel,  obeying  the  sign,  gazes 
earnestly  at  the  Evangelist,  and  a  second,  rising  to  look,  lays  a  little 
hand  upon  his  shoulder  with  a  gesture  of  confident  affection.  The 
neighbouring  Apostle  fixes  his  eager  eyes  on  the  Saviour,  heedless  of 
the  cherub  who  plucks  at  his  blue  mantle.  Below  the  group  two 
angels  plunge  merrily  into  the  wreaths  of  floating  cloud. 

In  the  open  space  dividing  this  group  from  the  next  a  single  angel 
hovers,  bathed  in  vaporous  light.  Beyond  rise  two  gigantic  figures, 
forming  one  of  the  most  beautiful  passages  in  the  composition.  The 
first  is  seen  in  profile,  his  face  in  shadow.  His  beard  and  hair  are 
dark  and  abundant ;  an  ample  green  mantle  is  wound  about  his  body. 
With  uplifted  hand  he  addresses  the  young  Apostle  beside  him,  a 
magnificent  nude  figure,  seated,  with  all  the  impressive  gravity  of 
an  antique  god,  on  the  yellow  robe  which  two  angels,  hovering  lightly 
among  the  clouds,  hold  up  beneath  him.  He  leans  his  left  elbow  on 
the  shoulder  of  an  attendant  cherub  ;  the  piitto,  feeling  the  weight, 
supports  himself  in  his  turn  on  the  back  of  another,  whose  little 
body  bends  beneath  the  double  burden.  The  Apollo-like  head,  with 
its  crisp  fair  hair,  the  brilliant  eyes,  the  dignified  attitude,  the  perfect 
modelling  of  the  nude  form,  admirable  in  its  sobriety  and  freedom  from 
anatomical  display,  make  up  a  type  of  manly  beauty  which  might  bear 
comparison  with  the  finest  examples  of  classic  sculpture.^ 

Other  angels,  seated,  or  grouped  among  the  large  figures,  or 
sporting  joyously  among  the  clouds,  are  carried  round  the  whole 
circumference  of  the  dome,  like  the  flowers  of  a  garland.  Around 
the  feet,  between  the  legs,  and  under  the  blue  mantle  of  the  next 
Apostle,  a  richly  coloured  figure,  with  tawny  hair  and  ruddy  flesh-tints, 

1  There  is  a  famous  sketch  by  Correggio  in  red  pencil  of  this  Apostle  and  Iiis 
attendant  angels  in  the  Louvre.  In  the  fresco  the  painter  altered  the  pose  of  the  head. 
Another  dra\ving  of  a  group  of  three  Apostles  and  several  angels  on  clouds  is  in  the 
Vienna  Museum.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  it  was  a  study  made  for  this  cupola,  but 
abandoned  in  favour  of  some  new  idea.  Herr  v.  Becherath  of  Berlin  also  owns  a  small 
drawing  of  the  Apostle  Paul  with  angels. 

1)    D 


202  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

several  cherubs  are  clustered,  absorbed  in  their  own  sports,  like  the 
genii  that  gather  round  the  symbolic  statue  of  the  Nile.  One  of  these 
clings  to  the  Apostle's  foot,  and  gazes  upwards.  The  gentle  expression 
of  the  saint  who  permits  these  innocent  gambols  is  contrasted  with 
the  severe  features  and  leonine  head  of  his  neighbour,  who,  seated  and 
seen  in  profile,  one  hand  resting  on  his  hip,  the  other  extended  behind 
him,  leans  forward  to  look  at  St.  John.     The  last  two  colossal  figures 


are  turned  in  the  same  direction.  St.  Peter,  with  snowy  hair  and 
beard  and  yellow  mantle,  which  conceals  but  little  of  his  form,  holds 
the  golden  keys  in  his  right  hand,  and  raises  the  left  towards  heaven, 
pointing  out  the  ascending  Saviour  to  the  Evangelist  of  Patmos, 
on  whom  St.  Paul's  eyes  are  likewise  fixed.  The  latter,  a  perfectly 
nude  figure,  supports  his  chin  on  one  hand.  The  cherubs  approach 
this  group,    peering  at  them   through    the    clouds,    but    they    do    not 


Jricaa  oj  an  ^U>o^sll 


TOSCHI'S    REPRODUCTIONS    C 


clamber  about  them  nor  interpose  between  them  with  their  accustomed 
gay  assurance.  The  austerity  of  the  two  chief  Apostles  seems  to  hold 
them  in  awe. 

The  darkness  which  has  reigned  in  this  cupola  for  three  and  a  half 
centuries,  broken  only  by  the  scanty  light  of  four  small  apertures,  has 
prevented  a  proper  appreciation  of  these  frescoes,  and  indeed,  if  we  may 
venture  to  say 
so,  of  Correggio 
himself.  The 
famous  Paolo 
Toschi  and  his 
scholars  repro- 
duced these,  as 
well  as  all  other 
frescoes  by  Cor- 
reggio, first  in 
water-colour  and 
afterwards  in  en- 
gravings. But 
much  as  we  ad- 
mire their  work, 
which  is  really 
remarkable,  tak- 
ing into  account 
the  fact  that  cer- 
tain    injured     pOr-  STIDV    of    an     apostle    tOK    THK    CUrOLA    OF    SAN    GIOVANNI    EVANCFLISTA, 

tions   had   to   be  in  the  i.ouvre 

translated,  rather 

reproduced,  it  must  be  admitted  that  they  very  often  made  their  own 
impressions,  their  own  individuality,  and  the  teachings  of  their  school, 
do  duty  for  a  scrupulous  adherence  to  the  sentiment  and  ieatures 
of  the  original.  A  certain  academic  air  pervades  their  reproductions, 
giving  a  softness  and  polish  to  the  whole  which  students  have  accepted 
as  characteristic  of  the  master,  and  which  have  done  much  to  justify  the 
Arcadian  title  oi  the  painter  of  the  Gnues,  as  applied  to  Correggio.     In 


I 

n 

IfT^*   ■ 

■ 

4 

f   f 

•-'■^O 

■<»-■  . 

204  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

reality,  few  works  of  the  Italian  Renaissance  are  more  vigorous  in 
conception,  expression,  and  execution  than  the  decorations  of  this 
cupola. 

The  figures  of  the  Apostles  and  of  the  Redeemer  preserve  the  just 
proportions  of  muscle  'in  the  vast  scale  on  which  they  are  designed,  and 
are  never  weak  nor  slovenly  in  treatment.  Michelangelo  obtained  a 
muscular  grandeur  and  vigour  by  an  ostentatious  display  of  anatomical 


From  the  Cupola  of  San 


reliefs,  and  created  a  school  which  ended,  as  Benvenuto  Cellini  said  of 
Bandinello,  by  making  sac/cs  of  melons  instead  of  figures.  In  Cor- 
rcggio's  more  sober  creations,  strength  and  solemnity  join  hands  with 
dignity  and  beauty.  There  are  no  exaggerated  attitudes,  no  gestures 
out  of  harmony  with  those  great  spirits  who  spread  the  word  of 
God  throughout  the  nations.  Although  in  the  rendering  of  their  nude 
forms  the  painter  has  discarded  the  timid  and  austere  composure  of  the 


FRESCOES    IN    SAN    (IIOVANNI    EVANGELIS'I'A  205 

fifteenth-century  tradition  for  the  highest  development  of  mascuHnc 
vigour,  his  saints  lose  nothing  of  the  dignity  proper  to  their 
character. 

The  riotous  band  of  children,  no  longer  ana-mic  and  contemplative, 
hut  Ijrimming  over  with  health  and  merriment,  are  in  perfect  harmony 
with  the  colossal  forms  of  the  Apostles.  The  agile  movements  of  their 
robust  little  bodies  emphasise  the  power  of  the  saintly  giants,  because 


we  recognise  in  the  one  development  the  germ  of  the  other,  and  see  in 
these  youthful  forms  a  promise  of  the  vigorous  manhood  realised  in  the 
pioneers  of  Christianity. 

The  mellow  tones  of  the  carnations,  so  life-like  that  the  blood  seems 
to  be  circling  beneath  the  painted  epidermis,  the  lofty  gaze  of  the 
thoughtful  saints,  the  lively  eyes  and  smiling  faces  of  the  vivacious 
butti,   the  movement  of  the  air  that   stirs   their  fair  locks,    the    long 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


hair,  beards,  and  mantles  of  ihe  Apostles,  all  combine  to  kindle  the 
"fire  of  life"  in  this  miraculous  vision. 

The  full  enjoyment  of  its  beauties  has  been  reserved  for  our  own 
times.  For  the  last  three  hundred  and  seventy  years  the  student  of 
these  frescoes  has  had  to  contend  against  the  difficulties  of  distinguish- 
ing forms  and  colours  in  the  semi-obscurity  of  the  dome.     In  1894  it 

occurred  to  us 
that  a  circle  of 
some  hundred 
little  electric 
lamps  concealed 
in  the  cornice 
would  illumine 
and  reveal  the 
masterpiece. 
The  idea  was  fa- 
vourably receiv- 
ed and  warmly 
supported  by  Dr. 
Giovanni  Mari- 
otti,  to  whom  the 
execution  of  the 
project  and  the 
gratitude  of  all 
admirers  of  Cor- 
reggio  are  alike 
due.     The  light, 

as  it  gradually  extends  throughout  the  dome,  "  gives  it  the  appearance 
of  a  fragment  of  heaven  suddenly  disclosed  in  the  sacred  darkness  of 
the  temple,"  and  when  "it  begins  to  diminish  and  die  out,  it  seems  as  if 
Christ,  the  Apostles,  St.  John,  the  angels,  the  clouds,  the  vi^hole  vision 
in  short,  were  fading  away  in  the  azure  firmament,  whence  but  now  it 
drew  near  to  fill  our  souls  with  wonder  and  delight." ' 

1   K.  Panzacchi,  //  C<»-rt\zi^w  (in  Natiira  ed  Arte,  year  iii.,  nos.  i  S  and  2 1 .     Milan,  1 894). 
Another  article  by  this  writer  api  eared  in  the  volume  ^/ n'ssi?,  pp.  115-123.    Rome,  1882. 


TECHNIQUE    OF   THE    FRESCOES  207 

In  the  spaces  between  the  four  round  windows  in  the  frieze,  Cor- 
reggio  painted  the  symbols  of  the  Evangelists  amidst  a  network  of 
festoons  and  ornaments.  ''  There  were,"  says  the  writer  of  the  Apo- 
calypse, "  four  beasts.  And  the  first  beast  was  like  a  lion,  and  the 
second  beast  was  like  a  calf,  and  the  third  beast  had  a  face  as  a  man, 
and  the  fourth  beast  was  like  a  flying  eagle."  These  symbols  are  not 
represented  motionless  and  isolated  as  in  earlier  paintings  and  sculpture, 
but  are  grouped  in  couples,  and  show  a  friendly  affection  one  for  the 
other.  St.  Matthew's  angel  tenderly  embraces  St.  John's  eagle.  In 
another  space,  the  eagle  rests  his  beak  against  the  muzzle  of  St.  Luke's 
winged  calf,  and  the  latter  is  seen  again  with  St.  Mark's  lion,  their 
heads  laid  lovingly  together.  Finally,  the  angel  re-appears,  in  the 
act  of  caressing  the  lion.^  The  spirit  of  Correggio,  who  aimed  at  life 
and  motion  in  everything  he  touched,  manifests  itself  even  in  these 
symbols,  which  are  almost  entirely  hidden  from  spectators  below. 

We  have  carefully  examined  each  portion  of  the  fresco  here 
described.  The  technique  is  much  broader  and  more  confident  than 
in  the  decorations  of  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo.  The  high  lights  are 
nearly  always  put  in  upon  the  dark  ground,  and  it  is  only  here  and 
there  that  the  shadows  are  strengthened  by  additional  strokes  of  the 
brush  on  the  prepared  surface.  The  carnations,  especially  those  of  the 
faces,  are  obtained  by  the  perfect  fusion  of  tints  on  the  palette,  and 
are  entirely  without  traces  of  the  successive  touches  affected  by  Titian 
and  his  followers.  There  is  not  a  single  break,  not  a  single  passage 
where  the  brushing  may  be  clearly  distinguished  ;  there  is  the  same 
absolute  fusion  of  tints  as  in  glass  or  enamel  painting.  And  yet  the 
application  of  the  same  methods  the  painter  made  use  of  in  his  small 
easel  pictures  to  these  Cyclopean  heads  and  bodies  has  not  resulted  in 
any  loss  of  their  proper  energy.  Though  a  good  deal  damaged,  they 
are  still  as  vigorous  as  ever  from  a  distance. 

1  There  is  a  drawing  in  the  Louvre  01  the  two  groups  in  which  the  angel  appears. 
The  Catalogue  sontmaire  des  dessins,  cartons,  pastels,  etc.  (Paris,  no  date),  makes  no 
mention  at  all  of  the  paintings,  nor  of  the  symbolic  meaning  of  the  drawings,  which  are 
thus  described  :  Enfant  aile  assis,  tenant  un  aig/e.  Enfant  tenant  un  lion  ailc.  Another 
drawing  of  an  Apostle  is  described  as  Etude  d'homme  nu  portc  par  un  angc.  As  the 
reader  may  suppose,  this  catalogue  is  practically  useless. 


cndenlives  of  tlie  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,   Parm 


I'endcntivcs  of   the  Cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelic 


2IO  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

The  surface  of  the  dome  is  disfigured  by  a  long  crack,  wide  enough 
for  the  insertion  of  a  man's  hand,  which  runs  along  about  two  thirds  of 
the  circumference.  Portions  of  the  painting  have  scaled  off;  others 
are  defaced  by  a  perfect  network  of  small  cracks,  and  in  others, 
again,  the  ground  has  crumbled  away,  leaving  the  first  rough  casting 
of  the  plaster  exposed.  To  these  local  injuries  another  has  been 
added,  which  has  impartially  sullied  the  entire  surface.  The  smoke 
from  incense  and  flambeaux,  especially  during  the  great  funeral  cere- 
monies held  beneath  the  dome,  many  of  them  lasting  several  days, 
and  entailing  the  constant  burning  of  some  thousands  of  candles,  has 
covered  the  frescoes  with  a  dark  greasy  coating,  blackening  the 
shadows,  and  quenching  the  lights.  If  the  hand  is  passed  along  the 
surface,  it  brings  away  a  thick  layer  of  dirt,  and  the  colours  beneath 
re-appear  in  all  their  primitive  vivacity. 

A  thorough  and  careful  cleaning  of  the  whole  work  (a  project 
already  mooted)  would  be  of  the  greatest  advantage  to  the  upper 
portion  of  the  dome  ;  but,  unhappily,  it  could  do  little  to  restore  the 
ruined  pendentives.  The  damp  has  penetrated  to  these  from  the 
small  windows  above;  they  are  bleached  and  mildewed  beyond  recall, 
and  shov/  large  patches  where  the  colour  has  crumbled  away  entirely. 
The  fragments  that  remain  intact  give  some  idea  of  their  original 
grandeur.  In  the  eight  angles  formed  by  the  junction  of  the  arches 
with  the  fillet  above,  eight  cherubs  recline  along  the  cornice  on 
palm-branches,  or  festoons  of  fruit  and  foliage.  These  youthful 
angels  are  supremely  beautiful.  Their  faces  beam  with  smiles.  I 
can  recall  no  more  exquisite  rendering  of  infant  loveliness.  In 
each  of  the  pendentives  an  Evangelist  and  a  Doctor  of  the 
Church  converse  together,  seated  upon  clouds  in  which  groups  of 
cherubs  disport  themselves.  Standing  under  the  centre  of  the  dome, 
and  facing  the  nave,  we  have  in  the  pendentive  to  the  left  St.  Luke, 
seated  on  the  calf  He  wears  a  blue  underdress  and  a  violet  mantle  ; 
one  hand  is  laid  on  the  book  upon  his  knee,  the  other  is  held  behind 
his  ear,  to  enable  him  to  catch  the  words  of  St.  Ambrose,  who,  attired 
in  episcopal  robes  of  white  embroidered  with  gold,  reads  aloud  to  him  ; 
an  angel  bears  the   mitre.      In  the  pendentive  to  the  right,  St.  Mark, 


PENDENTIVES    OF   SAN    GIOVANNI    EVANCIELISTA  211 

in  a  tunic  of  dull  reddish  brown,  and  bright  bkie  mantle,  leans  his 
right  hand  on  the  tawny  back  of  the  lion,  and  holds  his  book  in  the 
left.  He  is  seated  side  by  side  with  St.  Gregory,  who,  attired  in  his 
pontifical  robes,  gazes  heavenwards,  pausing  in  his  writing  to  await 
the  words  of  the  Holy  Spirit  which  the  evangelist  pours  into  his  ear. 
The  tiara  and  crozier  are  carried  by  a  little  angel  near  the  group. 

The  opposite  pendentives  have  suffered  less  from  the  damp.  In 
one  St.  John,  a  young  man  with  fair  hair  flowing  over  his  shoulders, 
dressed  in  a  bright  blue  robe  and  red  mantle,  sits  by  the  eagle,  an 
open  book  upon  his  knee.  He  propounds  certain  questions  to  St. 
Augustine,  marking  them  off  upon  his  fingers.  The  bishop  repeats  the 
gesture,  gazing  attentively  at  his  interlocutor.  He  wears  a  chasuble  of 
golden  tissue  over  his  greenish  robe,  and  an  attendant  cherub  bears  his 
mitre  and  pastoral  staff". 

An  angel,  who  wears  a  pale  green  tunic,  and  whose  wings  are 
blue,  holds  a  great  book  open  before  St.  Matthew.  The  saint  turns  to 
see  what  the  aged  St.  Jerome,  a  bald,  white-bearded  old  man,  has 
written.  St.  Jerome's  cardinal's  hat  is  held  by  the/////t»  on  the  cornice, 
and  not  Ijy  the  little  attendant  cherub  of  the  other  pendentives,  his 
place  being  taken  here  by  St.  Matthew's  symbolic  angel.  In  this 
group  again  the  colours  of  the  draperies  are  soft  and  subdued. 

The  sobriety  we  noted  in  the  nudities  of  the  upper  cupola  displays 
itself  here  in  the  simplicity  of  the  draperies.  These  Doctors  and  Evan- 
gelists with  their  thoughtful  eyes  and  brows,  worthy  exponents  of  divine 
mysteries,  are  no  less  impressive  than  the  Apostles  above.  The  dignity 
of  their  attitudes  has  no  parallel  save  in  certain  groups  in  the  Dispute 
of  the  Sacrament,  and  Correggio  here  approaches  Raphael  very  closely 
both  in  conception  and  sentiment. 

Finally,  at  the  bases  of  the  soffits  of  the  four  great  arches  are 
eight  oval  garlands,  encircling  figures  painted  in  a  monochrome  of 
sepia.  These  have  scarcely  ever  been  carefully  studied  ;  they  are 
generally  hastily  glanced  at,  and  dismissed  as  the  work  oi  pupils.  Yet 
they  are  undoubtedly  by  the  master's  own  hand.  They  represent 
St.  Joseph,  with  the  flowering  rod  ;  Moses,  gazing  in  astonishment  at 
the  fire  which  burns  without  consuming  the  bush  ;  Elijah,  on  the  fiery 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


chariot  ;  Daniel,  hovering  unharmed  among  the  flames  of  the  furnace  to 
which  he  was  condemned  by  Nebuchadnezzar  ;  /ona/i,  cast  on  shore  by 
the  whale,  of  which  all  we  see  is  the  enormous  head  ;  Samson,  carrying 
away  the  gates  of  Gaza  ;  Abrahaiii s  Sacrifice,  and  the  Deatli  of  Abel. 

Above  these  sculpturesque  forms  of  neutral  tones  and  the  simulated 
marble  cornices,  the  more  vivid  colouring  of  the  pendentives  asserts 
itself  in  perfect  harmony,  vigorous,  but  nowhere  crude  and  excessive. 
The  painter  was  evidently  careful  to  exxlude  red  as  far  as  possible  from 

his  scheme,  and  it  appears  only 
on  small  portions  of  the  more 
distant  objects  ;  even  this  sparing 
use  of  the  tint  is  further  neu- 
tralised by  deadening  its  tones. 
Blues,  on  the  other  hand,  abound 
in  infinite  gradation,  and  greens, 
which  are  akin  to  the  former  in 
chromatic  values.  This  predomi- 
nance of  cool  colours  gives  extra- 
ordinary vigour  and  effect  to  the 
flesh-tints  of  the  Apostles  and 
_.  »«^  ''^^Sjgg^g^^gBiggk,  cherubs,  and  an  added  radiance 
. «^f   V^BflNB^^^^ii       ^"'^    transparency   to   the   lumin- 

!^^LJI^^^MiHl^Bi^Bl       ous     clouds   and    golden    sky    in 

LiiuiK  MALLS  IX  EA,-,  oiuvAXM  tvANGELisTA,  i-AKMA.         whlch   thc  Savlour  riscs  hcaveU" 

ward. 
In  his  frescoes  in  Parma  Cathedral,  Correggio  showed  a  greater 
mastery  of  technique.  He  solved  the  most  difficult  and  intricate  prob- 
lems of  foreshortening  ;  he  attained  to  the  fullest  expression  of  life, 
movement,  and  joyful  emotion.  But  the  tumult  of  figures,  the  ex- 
cessive contortions  of  the  bodies,  the  agitated  play  of  the  over- 
voluminous  draperies,  produce  an  impression  of  unrest,  almost  of 
discomfort.  The  spectator  feels  that  one  pair  of  eyes  hardly  suffice  him 
for  the  admiration  and  comprehension  of  the  whole,  and  he  returns 
with  a  sensation  of  calm  enjoyment  to  the  contemplation  of  the  cupola 
of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista. 


FRESCO    IN    THE    APSE  213 

In  the  account  of  money  paid  to  Correggio  tor  his  works  in  the 
church,  we  find,  immediately  after  the  entries  of  expenses  connecteil 
with  the  decoration  of  the  cupola,  a  payment  made  to  the  artist  for 
painting  the  QTcat  chapel,  i.e.  the  tribune.  A  copy  has,  however, 
taken  the  place  of  the  original  fresco,  of  which  only  a  few  small  frag- 
ments have  been  preserved. 

In  15S6  the  Benedictines  commissioned  Cesare  Aretusi,  a  Bolognese 
painter,  born  about  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  to  make  a  copy 


of  the  fresco.  In  the  following  year  the  entire  apse  was  demolished  to 
enlarge  the  church,  and  Cesare,  assisted  by  Ercole  Pio  and  Giovanni 
Antonio  Paganino,  repainted  the  new  tribune  from  the  copy. 
Malvasia^  and  Ruta-  declare  that  Aretusi,  in  his  turn,  had  com- 
missioned Agostino  and  Annibale  Carracci  to  make  the  first  copy  from 

1  Fihiiuj  pitlriiC,  i.  p.  250  ;  ii.  p.  So.     IJologna,  18S4. 

-  Giiida  id  esdtta  iiotizia  ai  funstieri  de/k  pittitre  die  soiio  iic/h-  liiiesc  di  Parnio,  p.  57. 
Parma,  1752. 


2  14  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

the  original,  of  whicli  Annibale  had  painted  several  studies  six 
years  before.^  This  was  probably  true.  Certain  large  canvases  by 
the  Carracci,  after  the  frescoes  in  the  apse  of  San  Giovanni,  were  in 
the  Palazzo  del  Giardino  at  Parma  until  [734.-  They  are  now  in  the 
Naples  Museum,  and  it  seems  probable  that  they  served  the  purpose 
indicated  by  Malvasia  and  Ruta,  for  they  are  not  studies  of  isolated 
figures  or  groups,  forming  pictures  in  themselves,  but  reproduce  the 
painting  in  bands  or  strips,  the  figures  being  occasionally  divided  into 
halves  at  the  edges  of  the  canvas.  When  we  further  find  that  Agostino 
and  Annibale  were  both  in  Parma  in  15S6,  the  chain  of  evidence  is 
fairly  complete."  We  note  with  surprise  the  rapid  decline  of  artistic 
sympathies.  The  Benedictines  were  indeed  degenerate  successors  of 
those  who  had  immediately  preceded  them.  The  vandalism  which 
caused  them  to  destroy  a  work  of  so  much  value  rather  than  suffer  any 
inconvenience  in  the  exercise  of  their  great  religious  ceremonies  has  been 
severely  censured,  but  it  has  nevertheless  found  defenders.  Among 
these  we  even  find  one  of  Correggio's  biographers!  "  When,"  writes 
Pungileoni,  "  the  people  assembled,  as  was  the  pious  custom  of  the  age, 
to  participate  in  the  holy  oflkes,  the  monks  felt  the  necessity  of  throw- 
ing the  choir  further  back,  and  giving  up  the  space  occupied  by  the 
tribune  to  the  devout  crowd."  It  may  be  asked  why  this  should  have 
been  considered  a  sufficient  reason  for  the  destruction  of  a  masterpiece. 
Could  not  some  lateral  chapel  have  been  built  close  to  the  apse,  on  the 
ground  occupied  by  the  gardens  ?  The  arguments  of  the  historian 
become  yet  feebler,  when  he  adds,  in  justification  of  the  offence,  that 
there  was  every  reason  to  be  content  with  Aretusi's  copy,  "  which 
several  persons  had  believed  to  be  the  work  of  the  master  himself.'  ^ 
(.SVf  pp.  140  and  142.) 

Jesus,  enthroned  on  clouds  in  a  great  nimbus  of  golden  light,  wrapt 

'  They  are  i)rescrved  in  the  I'anna  Gallery.  Others  are  to  be  found  in  tlie  Archi- 
cpiscopal  Palace.  See  also  ]?ottari,  Lctterc  ar/istii/w,  ii.  i)p.  253  and  306;  vii.  p.  371  ; 
and  Campori,  Calalog/ii  e  invenfan',  [jp.  242  and  244. 

-  Malvasia,  op.  cit.  i.  p.  356. 

3  Malvasia,  op.  cit.  i.  pp.  268-270.  In  the  Parma  Gallery  there  is  a  picUire  painted 
by  Agostino  for  the  nuns  of  San  Paolo,  dated  1586.  There  is  also  an  engraving  by 
him,  dated  1587,  after  Correggio's  Ecce  Homo,  which  was  then  in  Parma. 

4  op.  cit.  i.  p.  135  ctscq.  ;  ii.  p.  17s  ctsc!. 


ARETUSrS    COPY    OF    rORRF.COTO'S    FRESCO  215 

in  a  white  mantle,  and  bearing   in    his   left    hand   a  sceptre,   raises   his 

right    hand    to   place   a    crown   of   stars    on    the   Virgin's   head.      She 

wears  a  crimson  robe  and   bright  blue  mantle,  and  bends  towards  the 

Saviour   with   an   expression  of  gentle  satisfaction,   her  arms   crossed 

upon   her  breast.     The   half-length   figures    of  St.    Benedict   and   St. 

Maurus  emerge  from  the  clouds  on   either  side   of  the  group.      Each 

saint  is  attended  by  a  little  angel,  bearing  the  pastoral  staff  and  mitre. 

Further  to  the   right  is  the  solemn   figure  of  the  kneeling   Baptist,  the 

cross  in  his  hands.    Near  him  an  angel  embraces  the  mystic  lamb.      On 

the  opposite  side  St.  John  the  Evangelist  also  kneels  in   adoration,  the 

book  and  chalice  in  his  hands,  his  eagle  at  his  feet.      Angels  in  every 

variety  of  joyful   and   animated    attitude   are  scattered   throughout   the 

composition,  and  cluster  thickly  behind  the  two  kneeling  saints,  singing 

and  playing  with  rapturous  energy.     Above  stretches  another  belt  of 

clouds,  from  either  end  of  which  another  band  of  angels  emerges,  and 

against    the     blue    empyrean    rise    the    eight    concentric    shafts    of  a 

Mantegnesque    canopy   of  foliage,    held    in    place   by    a  semicircle   of 

interwoven  fruits  and  leaves.     [See  headpiece  to  Preface,  p.  v.) 

The  praises  bestowed  on  Aretusi  for  this  copy  seem  to  us  altogether 

excessive.      The  general  effect  is  pleasing,  but  the  work  cannot  stand 

the  test  of  detailed  examination.     Comparing  it  with  the   two  original 

figures   of  the   Madonna  and  the   Saviour  which  were  saved  from  the 

ruin,   and  are  now  in   the   Palatine  Library  at  Parma,  we  note  at  once 

how   inadecjuately   the   copyist   has   rendered    the  smiling  sweetness  of 

the  Virgin's  face,  how  he  has  disfigured  the  nose  of  the   Saviour,  and 

how  hard  and  angular  the  modelling  of  the   breast   has  become   under 

his   hand.^      Several   of  the   heads    in   the  two  lateral  groups  of  angels 

have   been   altered,    and   spoilt    in    the   alteration,   by  Aretusi  and   his 

assistants,  as  we  may  see  by  comparing  them  with  the  Carracci  copies, 

or  better  still,  with  certain  other  fragments  of  the  original  fresco,  which, 

like  the  group  of  the  two  protagonists,  have  escaped  destruction,  and 

are  now  in  Mr.  Ludwig  Mond's  collection  in  London. 

1  There  is  a  beautiful  sketch  by  Correggio  for  the  figure  nf  tlie  \'irgin  in  the  Louvre. 
It  is  in  red  chalk  ;  the  attitude  differs  slightly  from  that  of  the  painted  figure.  This 
drawing  may  be  identical  with  one  which  was  at  Modena  in  tlie  last  century.  Tiraboschi, 
vi.  p.  2S9.    ' 


2i6  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGCxIO 

Mengs  and  Tiraboschi  tell  us  that  some  of  the  fragments  passed 
Into  the  hands  of  private  collectors,  and  that  in  their  time  there  were 
three  of  these  in  the  possession  of  the  Marchese  Rondanini  at  Rome.^ 
It  is  not  improbable  that  these  were  the  very  fragments  bought  by 
Mr.  Mond  at  the  sale  of  the  Dudley  collection.     {See  pp.  v.  and  139.) 

Correggio's  share  in  the  decorations  of  the  nave,  such  as  the  frieze, 
the  candelabra   on   the  pilasters,  the  vaulting,  and  the  archivolts,  was 

limited  to  the  de- 
signs, and  perhaps 
to  the  e.Kecution  of 
a  few  fragments  as 
samples  for  his  as- 
sistants. The  fact 
of  his  having,  in 
November,  1522, 
contracted  to  com- 
plete the  work  for 
sixty-six  ducats,  is 
by  no  means  in- 
compatible with  the 
probability  that  the 
less  important  parts 
of  the  undertaking 
were  intrusted  to 
his   pupils. 

Rondani's  hand 
is,  in  fact,  to  be 
recognised  in  the 
frieze  ;  that  of  Anselmi  is  no  less  apparent  in  the  arabesques  of  the 
vault,  and  it  is  futile  to  appeal  to  the  less  conclusive  evidence  of  docu- 
ments in  support  of  Correggio's  authorship,  as  do  Baistrocchi  -  and 
Tiraboschi. ■"■      For   once  we  find   ourselves   in    perfect  agreement  with 


ihe  P.irm.-i  Cillery. 


Mengs,  ii.  \).  153.  'I'irabosc 
Vite  d'aiiisli,  MS.  no.  1106, 
Op.cit.  vi.  p.  261. 


in  the  Misci'Ihvien,  in  tlic  Royal  Library 


FRIEZE    IN   THE    NAVE 


Father  Resta,  who  says  that  Correggio  designed  the  frieze,  and 
that  Rondani  painted  it.'  The  composition,  with  its  agreeable; 
diversity  of  coloured  and  monochromatic  figures,  is  thoroughly  Cor- 
reggesque.  In  each  of  the  spaces  between  the  candelabra  (on  the 
capitals  of  which  two  cherubs  hold  up  cartels  with  mottoes)  a  large 
figure  of  a  prophetess  or  sibyl  is  painted  in  colours  on  either  side. 
The  centre  is  occupied  by  one  of  two  designs  in  monochrome, 
which  are  repeated  alternately  the  whole  way  round.  The  one 
represents  a  group  of  per- 
sons at  a  tomb  ;  the  other, 
a  crowd  assembled  round 
an  altar  on  the  sacrificial 
fire  of  which  a  lamb  is 
burning. 

x^fter  a  careful  examina- 
tion of  the  twelve  composi- 
tions, we  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  one  among 
them  was  executed  almost 
entirely  by  Correggio  him- 
self. This  is  the  fourth  on 
the  right.  What  more  likely, 
indeed,  than  that  Correggio, 
after  preparing  the  design, 
should  have  painted  a 
sample  to  guide  his  disciple 
in  the  matter  of  colours  and 
effects  ?  This  one  com- 
partment is  remarkable  for  its  freedom  from  the  coarseness  of  execu- 
tion noticeable  in  all  the  rest.  The  sibyls  are  beautiful  and  Imposing 
figures,  finely  drawn,  the  eyes  full  of  light  and  animation.  One  has 
a  rapt  expression,  the  other  is  calm  and  smiling.  The  grisaille 
shows  none  of  the  staccato  brush-strokes  of  the  remaining  eleven. 
The  tones  are  softer,  more  fused,  and  more  equable. 
1  Iiidice  del  Parnasso  dci  fittori,  p.  68. 

F    F 


2rS  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

The  minor  ornamentation,  on  the  other  hand,  we  believe  to  have 
been  left  entirely  to  Anselmi,  an  artist  greatly  superior  both  in  taste 
and  culture  to  Rondani.  It  consists  of  a  tracery  of  foliage,  arms,  and 
amphorae,  thickly  interspersed  with  little  figures  of  women,  tritons,  and 
animals  ;  the  general  effect  is  a  little  cold,  perhaps,  but  delicate 
and  accurate. 

Criticism,  constrained  to  negative  the  attribution  of  these  frescoes 
to  the  master,  who  was  certainly  commissioned  to  paint  them,  gladly 
confirms  the  ascription  to  him  of  the  magnificent  lunette  over  the  small 
door  in  the  left  transept.  It  represents  St.  John  the  Evangelist  in  his 
youth,  his  long  hair  parted  in  the  middle,  and  flowing  over  his 
shoulders.  He  wears  a  robe  of  pale  violet ;  a  crimson  drapery  is 
thrown  across  his  legs.  He  is  seated  on  the  architrave,  beside  a  carved 
stool,  on  which  are  two  books,  one  of  which  has  gilt  edges  and  a  bind- 
ing of  red  velvet.  On  his  knees  is  spread  a  long  roll,  in  which  he  is 
about  to  write  ;  but  he  gazes  upward,  as  if  lost  in  mystic  reverie,  his 
eyes  fixed  on  space,  whence  the  divine  voice  addresses  him  :  "  I  know 
thy  works,  and  thy  charity  and  thy  faith,  and  thy  ministry  and  thy 
sufferings."  The  astonishment  of  this  beautiful  upturned  face  is 
skilfully  expressed  in  the  slightly  parted  lips,  and  in  the  dilated  pupils 
of  the  brilliant  eyes. 

The  eagle  is  not  represented  as  a  quiescent  and  purely  symbolic 
attribute  of  the  Apostle.  Turning  his  head,  he  plucks  at  one  of  his 
large  wing  feathers  with  his  beak,  an  action  which  has  caused  him 
to  be  described  by  some  writers  as  engaged  in  pluming  and  cleaning 
his  feathers.  The  idea  is  a  prosaic  one,  and  Correggio's  conception 
was,  no  doubt,  of  a  very  different  order.  He  had  evidently  made 
careful  studies  from  some  living  eagle.  The  accuracy  of  form,  and 
freedom  and  variety  of  attitude  displayed  in  his  five  renderings  of  the 
bird  in  this  one  church  are  conclusive  as  to  this.  It  is  no  longer  the 
stiff,  heraldic  eagle  of  traditional  art,  with  which  every  painter, 
Raphael  in  his  Saint  Cecilia  not  excepted,  had  hitherto  been  satisfied  ; 
but  the  bird  itself,  in  all  its  fierce  and  terrible  grace.  Now  it  is  known 
that  the  eagle  occasionally  plucks  out  a  feather  from  its  wings.  This 
.St.   John's   eagle  does   at  the  .solemn   moment  when    the    Evangelist 


"THK    MARTYRDOM    OF   ST.    PLACTDUS"  219 

bears  witness  to  the  power  of  God,  and  meditates  on  his  glory  and 
dominion  throughout  the  ages.  The  eagle  hastens  to  pull  out  the 
quill,  for  it  is  meet  that  the  divine  message  should  be  written  with  the 
feather  that  has  soared  nearest  to  heaven. 

Besides  these  numerous  works  in  fresco,  Correggio  painted  two 
pictures  for  the  church,  which  are  now  in  the  Parma  Gallery. 

They  were  originally  on  the  side  walls  of  the  fifth  chapel 
to  the  right,  where  they  are  now  replaced  by  two  wretched  copies,' 
and  are  said  to  have  been  painted  for  the  founder  of  the  chapel. 
Father  Placido  del  Bono,  of  Parma,  a  member  of  the  Coiifra- 
tcrnita  Cassinese,  and  confessor  to  Pope  Paul  III.-  They  remained 
in  their  original  place  until  1796,  in  which  year  they  were  in- 
cluded in  the  first  consignment  of  French  plunder,  and  taken  to 
Paris,  whence  they  returned  to  Parma  after  the  treaty  of  1815.'' 
Their  preservation  was  in  no  sense  due  to  the  monks,  who  at- 
tempted to  carry  them  off  and  sell  them  in  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  were  only  foiled  in  their  design  by  the  vigilance  of  the  Del 
Bono  family,  who  petitioned  the  duke  to  forbid  the  proposed 
removal.* 

Placidus,  son  of  the  patrician  Tertullus,  moved  by  the  preaching 
of  St.  Benedict,  gave  up  home  and  wealth  to  follow  his  teacher.  At 
Messina,  whither  he  repaired  to  promulgate  the  ordinances  of  the 
saint,  he  was  joined  by  his  sister  Flavia,  and  his  brothers,  Eutychius 
and  Victorinus.  Whilst  they  thus  laboured  to  the  great  comfort  and 
benefit  of  the  community,  Sicily  was  overwhelmed  by  a  terrible 
incursion  of  barbaric  hordes,  waging  war  not  only  upon  the  inhabit- 
ants, but  their  creed.  The  brothers  and  their  sister,  animated  by  a 
heroic   faith,   were  overawed   neither  by    threats   nor  by  martyrdom, 

1  Several  copies  were  made  from  these  liictures,  two  of  which  are  in  the  I'rado  at 
Madrid. 

2  I.  Afib,  //  Par/nigiaiio  scn'itore  di  Piazza,  \).  85.  Parma,  1796.  Pungileoni,  i. 
p.  149  ;  ii.  p.  187,  etc. 

3  Both  pictures  were  cleaned  and  slightly  retouched,  first  in  Paris  and  afterwards  in 
Parma.  They  are,  however,  in  fairly  good  condition,  the  restorations  being  confined  to 
the  less  important  parts. 

■*  E.  Scarabelli-Zunti,  Docuinenti  e  ine/non'e  di  bilk  arti  pan)ngia)ie.  MSS.  in  the 
Museum  of  Antiquities  at  Parma. 


220  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

which  they  suffered  with  great  fortitude,  rejoicing  that  their  state  of 
beatitude  should  be  thus  hastened.' 

This  episode,  which  furnished  the  argument  of  one  picture,  was 
no  doubt  chosen  by  Don  Placido  del  Bono  with  the  double  object  of 
exalting  St.  Benedict  and  glorifying  the  saint  whose  name  he  bore. 

Correggio  made  a  preliminary  study  of  the  arrangement  of  these 
figures,  differing  considerably  from   that  he  afterwards  adopted  in  the 


ST.    PLACIDUS 

111  the  Louvre 


picture.  The  drawing,  in  red  pencil,  is  now  In  the  Louvre.-  A 
comparison  of  this,  the  painter's  first  thought,  with  the  finished  work, 
is  of  great  interest.  We  see  how  earnestly  he  sought  to  avoid  a 
partly  symmetrical  arrangement,  and  give  movement  and  variety  to 
the  drama. 

In  the  study,  the  angel  bearing  the  palm  and  crown  of  martyrdom 

'   ./,/,?    Saiictonnii,    OctoliiT    5.       Oiovanni    ( 'roiscl,    l.c   Vile  dci  Saiiti,  iii.   p.   205. 
Venice,   lyjS. 

-  This  drawing  was  also  at  Modcna  in  the  eighteenth  century.     Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  288. 


'■THE    MARTYRDOM    OF   S'l'.    I'l.ACTDUS "  -i 

is  exactly  in  the  middle  of  the  composition.  Eutychius  and  Victorinus, 
kneeling  side  by  side,  their  severed  heads  oh  the  ground  before 
them,  form  two  monotonous  lines,  uniform  as  a  pair  of  caryatids,  their 
bodies  bent  at  exactly  the  same  angle,  the  blood  flowing  in  equal 
streams  from  either  neck,  their  arms  bound  in  like  fashion  behind 
their  backs.  \\'e  shall  see  how  greatly  these  two  figures  and  that  of 
the  angel  have  gained  by  alteration  in  the  picture.  One  executioner, 
about  to  aim  a  blow  at  the  neck  of  St.  Placidus,  has  placed  himself 
behind  the  saint,  in  the  most  inconvenient  position  he  could  have 
chosen  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  evil  task  ;  another,  standing 
beside  St.  Flavia,  thrusts  a  sword  into  her  breast. 

In  the  picture  all  this  is  altered.  On  a  hill-side  studded  with  oaks 
and  bushes,  and  brightly  illumined  by  a  clear  noon-day  light,  the 
kneeling  saint,  his  arms  folded  on  his  breast,  offers  his  neck,  which 
shows  the  gash  of  a  previous  wound,  to  the  headsman's  stroke.  The 
ruffian,  whose  back  is  turned  to  the  spectator,  raises  the  sword  in  his 
right  hand.  His  sleeve,  which  he  has  slipped  off  to  allow  freer  play  to 
his  arm,  hangs  behind  him.  On  the  other  side,  St.  Flavia,  who  also 
kneels,  gazes  joyfully  heavenwards,  as  if  welcoming  a  martyrdom  for 
which  she  yearns  ;  the  executioner  stands  over  her,  and  seizing  her  by  the 
hair,  plunges  the  sword  under  her  right  breast.  The  headless  bodies 
of  Eutychius  and  Victorinus  lie  on  the  ground,  bleeding  and  ghastly, 
one  close  by  St.  Flavia,  the  other  beyond  a  knoll  adjoining  the  group. 
An  angel  hovers  above  them  to  the  right,  bearing  the  symbols  of 
martyrdom. 

Although  there  are  passages  of  great  beauty  in  this  work,  it  is  not 
entirely  satisfactory.  There  is  something  forced  and  laboured  in  the 
figures  of  the  executioners,  especially  that  of  the  meagre  and  decrepit 
wretch  who  stands  over  St.  Flavia,  a  something  not  altogether 
pleasing  in  the  play  of  the  draperies,  and  in  the  distribution  of  the 
colour,  which  is  languid  and  subdued  in  the  group  of  St.  Placidus, 
brilliant  and  vivid  in  tliat  of  St.  IHavia.  The  landscape,  which 
to  the  left  is  painted  almost  in  a  monochrome  of  blues,  loses  its 
vigour  in  the  subdued  tones  of  the  foreground.  But  the  master's 
greatness  asserts  itself  in  the  head  of  St.  Placidus,  with  its  expression 


222  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

of  gentle  resignation,  and  the  exquisite  fusion  of  its  tones  ;  in  his 
superbly  painted  hands,  one  of  which  is  half  in  shadow,  the  finger-tips 
catching  the  sunlight  ;  in  the  ecstatic  smile  of  St.  Flavia,  and  finally, 
in  the  beauty  of  the  angel. 

Burckhardt  says  that  this  picture  is  remarkable  for  its  masterly 
execution,  the  splendour  of  its  summer  landscape,  and  the  marvellous 
rendering  of  the  martyr's  enthusiasm  in  the  faces  of  the  youthful  saints, 
but  that  the  painter  entirely  fails  to  Impress  us  with  the  horror  of  the 
scene. ^  It  is  true  that  as  a  whole  the  work  is  not  strikingly  dramatic, 
but  it  must  be  admitted  that  it  contains  passages  of  an  emotional 
quality  by  no  means  common  among  the  artists  of  the  Renaissance. 
We  may  instance  the  wound  in  the  saint's  neck,  from  which  we  gather 
that  he  was  not  despatched  at  one  stroke,  but  that  his  sufferings  were 
prolonged.  Again,  the  foreshortened  corpse  of  one  of  the  brothers, 
with  bare  breast,  his  garments  thrown  back  over  his  legs,  and  his  left 
hand  spasmodically  contracted,  as  if  in  his  agony  he  had  clutched  at 
the  ground,  is  full  of  a  tragic  intensity. 

The  companion  picture,  the  Descent  fro»i  the  Cross,  is  a  much  finer 
work  than  the  above.  Burckhardt  calls  it  a  masterpiece  of  super- 
ficial harmony.-  We  do  not  understand,  however,  why,  after  recognising 
the  depth  of  sentiment  in  the  head  of  Christ,  and  in  the  entire  figure  of 
the  Virgin,  he  goes  on  to  say  that  the  subject  was  one  rather  beyond 
Correggio's  powers.  Taking  into  account  the  tendencies  of  art  in  the 
last  days  of  the  Renaissance,  it  seems  to  us  that  the  theme  had  rarely 
been  more  convincingly  treated.  The  superb  modelling  of  the  nude 
body  stretched  out  upon  the  winding-sheet,  and  illumined  by  the  pale 
light  of  a  sky  from  which  the  storm  is  just  passing  away,  compels  the 
spectator's  attention  on  purely  aesthetic  grounds.  But  he  who  lingers 
over  the  work,  when  this  first  impression  has  worn  off,  will  see  that  the 
dead  face  is  full  of  the  expression  stamped  on  it  by  the  final  agony, 
and  that  the  contraction  of  intense  suffering  still  endures  in  the  pierced 
hands  and  feet.  The  head  is  supported  against  the  Virgin's  knees,  but 
she  falls  backwards  in  a  swoon,  her  e)es  half  closed,  a  mortal  pallor 
diffused    over  her    face,    her    mouth   convulsed    by   a    terrible    spasm. 

'    Lc  Cicerone,  ii.  p.  715.      Paris,  1892.  -   Op.  cit.  ii.  p.  71^. 


"THE    DESCENT   FROM    THE    r^ROSS  "  323 

liurckhardt  admits  the  truth  and  power  of  tliis  figiire.  The  very  hai\i( 
of  the  left  arm,  he  says,  shows  that  the  h'mits  of  endurance  have  been 
reached,' 

The   remaining  figures  are  less  fine,    in  spite    of   the    admiration 
they  excited  in   the  seventeenth   century.      The    Mary  Cleophas,   who 


advances  on   the  left,   was  repeatedly  imitated  by  the   Carracci,-  and 

1  The  most  serious  injury  sustained  by  this  picture  was  the  damage  done  to  the 
Virgin's  left  hand  in  1792  by  the  carelessness  of  (liuseijpe  Turchi,  when  he  was  replacing 
it  after  copying  it.  See  A.  Romani,  Caso  miscrando  occorsn  a  nii  qiiadro  del  Corn-i^'gio,  in 
the  journal,  Per  PAi-fc,  year  vi.  no.  19.     Parma,  1894. 

-  See  Agostino's  picture,  the  so-called  Madonna  delk  Coniriiiti',  in  the  Royal  Gallery 
at  Bologna,  and  the  picture  painted  by  .Vnnibale  for  the  Capuchins  of  Parma,  now  in  the 
gallery  of  the  city  (No.  169). 


2  24  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

the  Magdalen  roused  the  enthusiasm  of  Guerchio  and  of  Scannelli,  who 
said  that  the  most  perfect  beauty  and  the  most  profound  sorrow  met  in 
this  figure,  the  intensity  of  the  one  in  no  wise  detracting  from  that  of 
the  other !  ^  The  sentiment  which  appealed  to  the  more  meretricious 
taste  of  these  ancient  worthies  is  apt  to  strike  the  critic  of  to-day  as 
somewhat  artificial.  The  richly  dressed  Magdalen,  who  sinks  to  earth 
with  clasped  hands,  her  head  thrown  back,  the  fair  hair  streaming  over 
her  shoulders,  is  certainly  a  very  attractive  figure,  but  the  student  who 
looks  for  something  more  than  this,  and  scrutinises  the  emotional 
elements  of  the  conception,  perceives  at  once  that  the  grief  here 
expressed  is  a  superficial  sorrow,  scarcely  more  than  skin-deep.  We 
need  say  nothing  of  the  black-robed  Mary  who  supports  the  fainting 
Virgin,  and  the  Joseph  of  Arimathcea  who  descends  the  ladder,  the 
nails  and  pincers  in  his  hand.  They  certainly  add  nothing  to  the 
beauty   of  the   picture. 

The  background,  on  the  other  hand,  is  a  beautiful  and  masterly 
study  of  a  misty  woodland,  washed  by  recent  rain,  the  sunlight 
breaking  over  the  tree-tops. 

1  Fr.  Scannelli,  //  Minvmmo  dc//a  pil/iira,  p.  277.     V..  C.  Ratti,  of.  at.  ]).  61. 


CHAPTER    X 

MINOR  WORKS 

THE     "  ECCE      homo" — "  CHRIST     IN    THE     GARDEN     OF    GETHSEMANE" — "  Nor.I     ME 

TANGERE  " PICTURES      OF      THE      I\IAGI)AI,EN "  ST.      CATHERINE      READING" "  sT. 

JOSEPH"    AND    "ST.    JJIRG.ME'" 

AT  this  point  in  the  life 
of  Correggio  it  becomes 
somewhat  cHfhcult  to  fix 
the  exact  date  of  his  works 
without  the  aid  of  documents. 
His  style  was  formed,  his  sym- 
pathies had  declared  themselves, 
his  individuality  stood  revealed. 
As  these  chronological  difficulties 
increase,  there  is  a  proportionate 
falling  off  in  critical  interest, 
which  is  naturally  at  its  highest  in 
tracing  the  evolution  of  the  artist, 
and  languishes  when  confined  to 
the  examination  of  single  works. 
We  have  seen  that  AUegri  laid  aside  his  frescoes  in  San  Giovanni 

G    G 


226  ANTOXIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Evangc'lista  for  some  months,  and  that  he  returned  to  Correggio  hi 
July,  I  52  I,  remaining  in  his  native  city  until  the  following  spring.  It 
is  natural  to  suppose  that  during  these  nine  months  of  enforced 
absence  from  his  great  work,  and  constant  expectation  of  his  return 
to  Parma,  he  occupied  himself  on  certain  pictures  of  secondary 
importance,  such  as  the  Eccc  Homo,  Christ  in  the  Garden  of 
Gethsenianc,  and  the  Noli  nic  tangcrc,  works  in  which  we  discern 
affinities  both  in  sentiment  and  technique,  with  the  two  canvases 
painted  for  Father   Placido  del   Bono. 

Be  this  as  it  may,  we  now  propose  to  deal  with  these  and  other 
minor  works,  passing  on  to  the  frescoes  in  the  cupola  of  Parma 
Cathedral,  then  to  the  great  altar-pieces  executed  for  that  city,  for 
Modena,  and  for  Reggio,  and  finally,  to  the  mythological  subjects. 

It  is  generally  believed  that  the  original  Eccc  Homo,  of  which 
there  are  several  old  copies,^  is  the  picture  now  in  the  National 
Gallery  of  London. 

To  the  right  of  Jesus,  whose  hands  are  bound,  and  on  whose  head 
is  the  crown  of  thorns,  Pilate  appears,  and  shows  him  to  the  people. 
On  the  opposite  side  is  a  soldier.  Lower  down,  in  the  left  corner  of 
the  picture,  the  Magdalen  supports  the  fainting  Virgin. 

These  five  persons  are  brought  together  in  a  somewhat  small 
compass.  The  figure  of  Christ  is  rather  more  than  half  length,  those 
of  Pilate  and  the  Virgin  rather  less.  Only  the  head  and  hand  of  the 
Magdalen  are  visible,  and  all  that  is  seen  of  the  soldier  is  his  face. 
Yet  the  picture  is  by  no  means  wanting  in  grandeur.  The  fainting 
Madonna  is  less  dramatic  than  the  Virgin  of  the  Descent  from  the 
Cross,  but  on  the  other  hand,  she  is  more  beautiful.  Her  features 
are  less  disfigured  by  grief,  and  if  we  connect  the  two  figures,  taking 
them  as  illustrating  successive  phases  of  the  Passion,  we  shall  see  in 
one  the  mother,  overcome  with  grief,  but  sustained  to  some  extent  by 
hope  and  physical  energy;  in  the  other,  a  woman  stricken  and  helpless, 
with  no  comfort  left  her  on  earth.  The  artist  has  expressed  this  ex- 
tremity of  human  wretchedness  with  the  happiest  and  most  unflinching 

1  There  is  one  in  the  Communal  Palace  at  Rimini,  another  in  the  Estense  dallcry  at 
Modena,  and  a  third  in  the  Parma  Gallery. 


the  National  Gallery,  London. 


ECCK    HOMO' 


aesthetic  composure  ;  but  tliou^h  his  treatmrnt  of  the  thcuie  apiicals  Id 
the  culturcul  and  philosopliic  of  nioclcrn  times,  it  proved  a  dangerous 
precedent  for  his  successors.  In  copyii\o-  or  imitating  Correggio's 
works  they  were  met  in  this  instance  li\  the  insui)cral)Ie  dirficulty 
of  reproducing  the  sen- 
timent of  the  original. 
The  result  has  been 
that  whereas  there  are 
many  fairly  good  copies 
of  the  Brrc  Homo. 
there  is  not  one  of  the 
Descent  froii/  the  Cross 
which  is  even  tolerable. 
And  further,  we  find 
that  those  artists  who 
most  successfully 
studied  and  adopted 
Correggesque  forms 
(Annibale  Carracci,  for 
instance,  and  Lan- 
franco)  accepted  the 
Virgin  of  the  Bccc 
Homo  as  the  type  of 
the   ]\Iatcr  Dolorosa. 

The  emotion  ex- 
pressed by  the  Saviour 
is  less  impressive.  His 
is  not  the  anguish 
born  of  a  conscious- 
ness of  human  weak- 
ness and  misery,  liut  the  individual  agony  of  one  who,  suffering 
acutely,  has  not  sufficient  fortitude  to  repress  the  external  evidences 
of  his  pain. 

The   history   of  the   original,    like   that  of  many  other  pictures   by 
Correggio,  is  a   perfect   maze  of  contradictions  and  inaccuracies.      It 

G  G    2 


Cupoln  of  the  Cathe 
11  the  Vienna  Museu 


228  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

seems  certain,  however,  that  it  belonged  in  the  first  instance  to  the 
Counts  Prati  of  Parma,  in  whose  possession  it  was  found  by  Agostino 
Carracci  (who  engraved  it  in  15S7),  and  later,  about  the  middle  of  the 

seventeenth  century,  by 
Scannelli.^  When  Mengs 
saw  the  Ecce  Homo  -  in  the 
(_^'olonna  Gallery  at  Rome, 
he  declared  it  to  be  the 
picture  which  had  belonged 
to  the  Prati,"  but  it  does 
not  appear  that  he  had 
any  foundation  for  his  as- 
sertion beyond  the  fact 
that  a  similar  picture  be- 
longed to  the  family  in  the 
S  sixteenth    and    seventeenth 

L  centuries. 

In  the  Inventory  of  the 
,    ,    ^  ,     ,,       ,,,-,„.     ^,         ,  Duke    of  Mantua's    collec- 

Ij;  llie  Duke  of  Devon>.hiri:  i  Lolkctioii,   Cliatsworth. 

tion,  compiled  in  1627, 
another  Ecce  Homo  appears,  claiming  to  be  the  original  work  by 
Correggio,^  while  Scannelli  mentions  a  third  in  the  Casa  Salviati  at 
Florence.*  Thus  we  see  that  there  were  at  least  three  pictures  in  Italy 
about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  claiming  to  be  the  original 
Ecce  Homo  by  Correggio.  If  we  could  be  sure  that  no  subsequent 
confusion  of  copies  with  originals  had  taken  place,  it  might  be  possible 
to  trace  the  history  of  these  three,  assuming  them  all  to  have  been 
authentic.  But  the  anxiety  of  collectors  to  enhance  the  value  of  their 
pictures  by  labelling  them  with  imposing  names  has  caused,  and  will 
continue  to  cause,  the  history  of  several  pictures  to  be  concentrated 
upon  a  single  canvas. 

1  Microcosmo,  pp.  276  and  280. 

2  Open-,  ii.  p.  173.     See  also  Ramdohr,  Ufhcr  Malcrci  11  ml  BilJhaucrarheit  in  Rom, 
ii.  p.   85. 

^  U'Arco,  Ar/iili  mantovani,  ii.  p.  160.  ■*   Op.  cit.  p.  2S4. 


"ECCE    HOMO"  229 

We  give  the  legend  in  its  accepted  form. 

Tiraboschi,  contradicting  Mengs,  says  that  the  Prati  Ecce  Homo 
passed,  with  all  the  rest  of  the  family  possessions,  to  the  Marchese 
della  Rosa,  and  that  Louis  XIV.  obtained  it  from  him  by  a  trick 
unworthy  of  a  man  of  honour.  "  The  Marchese  Pier  Luigi  della  Rosa, 
to  whom  Louis  XIV.  had  expressed  his  desire  to  see  the  picture,  sent 
it  to  Prance  ;  a  copy  was  returned  to  Parma  in  place  of  the  original ; 
therefore  the  e.xample  in  the  Casa  Colonna  is  a  copy  or  replica."  ^ 
The  story  is  repeated  by  Affo,  who  asserts  that  it  was  commonly 
reported  in  Parma  during  his  time  that  the  Marchese,  having  sent  his 
picture  to  France  "  to  gratify  a  certain  great  personage,  had  a  copy 
returned  to  him  instead  of  the  original  work." 

This  fable,  constructed  on  popular  rumours  collected  by  Tiraboschi 
and  Affo,  was  demolished  in  iSio  by  Angelo  Mazza,  who  informed 
Pungileoni    that  the    Marchese    Marcello   Prati  (as    appears   from   his 

will,  dated    i6So)    sold    the  

j£"rrf//6i;;/f  and  other  pictures  | 

for    five    or     si.x     thousand 

zccchini,    a     step    to    which        i 

he    was    compelled     by    the  Sli-sfia^i*;^  = 

necessity  of  paying    off  the  '.Wl^m^^^' 

debts  by  which  his  patrimony 

was  encumbered.      The  will        , 

itself  is  not  forthcoming,  but        I  f 

a  deed    executed   by    Count 

Federigo     Prati    some    five        t         '/ 

years  earlier,  proves  that  the 

Ecce  Homo  was  still  in   the 

possession      of     the     family 

when  Louis  XIV.  had  been  '    ""    '      "       ' 

.  In  ,h.  Duke  ..i  DevoQ.lnr=',  C..!I=aK,n,   Ch.isu.rU, 

uead   some  sixty  years. 

All  this,  however,  as  Pungileoni  noted,  though  it  discredited  that  part 
of  the  story  which  reflected  on  the  French  King,  threw  no  additional 
light  on  the  subsequent  history  of  the  picture.      "  It  remains  uncertain 
1  Vol.  V.  p.  284. 


230  ANTONIO    DA    CORRRGGIO 

whetlier  it  passed  to  the  Marches!  dclla  Rosa  or  to  the  Raiardi,  and 
whether  it  is  to  be  identified  with  the  work  which  was  one  of  the 
proudest  possessions  of  the  Colonna  Gallery."  ^  Pungileoni's  doubts 
were  inspired  by  the  Mazza  above  mentioned,  who  had  been  unable  to 
discover  any  documents  expressly  stating  that  the  Marchese  Prati  had 

sold  this  and  other  pictures 
to  the  Colonna  family,  as 
was  generally  believed. 

No  further  proofs  have 
yet  come  to  light,  and  the 
doubts  expressed  by  Pun- 
gileoni  are  by  no  means  un- 
reasonable. 

It  is  certain,  however, 
that  the  Eccc  Homo  of  the 
National  Gallery  is  the  pic- 
ture formerly  in  the  Colonna 
Gallery.  It  was  sold  by  the 
family  to  Sir  Simon  Clarke, 
who,  finding  it  impossible  to 
take  it  out  of  Italy,  passed  it 
on  to  Murat,  then  King  of 
Naples.  His  widow,  Caro- 
line Bonaparte,  sold  it  in 
1834  to  the  Marquis  ol 
Londonderry,  from  whom  it 
was  acquired  by  the  Na- 
in  ih.  iiukc- of  Devun.hi,vs  Collection,  o,.-.t.wn,ii,.  tloual    Gallery."      The    first 

critic  who  questioned  the 
authenticity  of  the  picture  was  Viardot,  and  he  has  not  lacked  sup- 
jjorters.-"'      They  condemned    the    colour   as   insipid   and    the  shadows 

'    Op.  dl.  i.  ]!]).  irS-i  19  ;  ii.  p.  162. 

2  Mcytr,   p.  357;    Richter,  p.   27;    W.  V.   Hcaton,  p.  31;    sir    Frederick    liurton. 
Catalogue,  ]).  6. 

^  l-es  Afitsccs  d'Espagne,  (fA/igk/em,  ct  dc  Bch^iijiic,  \),  231,     Paris,  1843. 


"CHRIST    IN    THE    CARDKN    OK   GETHSEMANK"  231 

as  heavy.  Others,  however,  Waagen  and  iM'izzoni  ^  among  the 
number,  attribute  these  defects  to  a  loss  of  tone  caused  by  over- 
cleaning  and  restorations. 

The   Chriit  in  the  Garc/cii  of  Gcthscniaiic  is  a  Httle  gem. 

The  Saviour,  who  is  accompanied  l)y  Peter  and  the  two  sons  of 
Zebedee,  begins  to  be  sorrowful  and  very  heavy.  "  Then  saith  he 
unto  them  :  INIy  soul  is  e.xceeding  sorrowful,  even  unto  death  :  tarry 
ye  here  and  watch  with  me."  \\'ithdrawing  himself  from  them  about 
a  stone's  cast,  he  kneels  down  and  prays  :  "  Father,  all  things  are 
possible  to  thee  ;  take  away  this  zv\\y  from  me  ;  nevertheless,  not  what 
I  will,  but  what  thou  wilt."  Rising,  he  comes  to  the  disciples,  and 
finding  them  sleeping,  he  says  to  Peter:  "What,  could  ye  not  watch 
with  me  one  hour  ?  Watch  and  pray,  lest  ye  enter  into  temptation  : 
the  spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh  is  weak."  He  prays  again, 
returning  twice  to  the  disciples,  and  finding  them  still  slumbering. 
"  Sleep  on  now,  and  take  your  rest  ;  it  is  enoiigli,  the  hour  is  come. 
Behold,  the  son  of  man  is  betrayed  into  the  hands  of  sinners.  He  that 
betrayeth  me  is  at  hand." 

The  Evangelists  Matthew  and  Mark  give  the  episode  almost  in 
the  same  words  ;  St.  John  barely  alludes  to  it  ;  but  St.  Luke  adds 
further  that  an  angel  appeared  to  comfort  Jesus.  "  And  being  in 
an  agony  he  prayed  more  earnestly  :  and  his  sweat  was  as  it  were 
great  drops  of  blood  falling  to  the  ground." 

Correggio's  little  work  depicts  the  consoling  apparition  of  the 
angel.  He  hovers  in  mid-air  with  marvellous  ease  and  lightness, 
but  though  he  bears  the  healing  message  of  approaching  bliss,  he 
cannot  restrain  his  sense  of  pity.  His  face  is  at  once  radiant  and 
sorrowful,  expressing  the  mingled  feelings  with  which  he  points  on 
the  one  hand  to  heaven,  on  the  other  to  the  cross  and  crown  ot 
thorns.  Christ,  eftulgent  in  his  long  straight  robe  and  shining 
aureole,  gazes  upward  with  mournful  resignation,  the  spasm  of 
agony  dying  out  of  his  face.  The  twilight  landscape  is  calm  and 
melancholy.  The  supernatural  radiance  sheds  but  a  faint  light  on  the 
grass  and  bushes,  scarcely  touching  the  figures  of  the  sleeping  disciples, 
'  Arte  italiana  del  Rinascimcnto,  p.  358. 


2  32  ANTONIO    ])A    CORREGGIO 

and  dying  out  completely  in  the  dense  foliage  beyond.  But  in  the 
distance  a  band  of  soldiers,  scarcely  visible  by  the  faint  glimmer  of  their 
torches,  draws  near,  led  by  Judas,  and  over  the  mountains  the  sky 
whitens  with  the  first  pale  streaks  of  dawn.^ 

This  masterpiece  of  poetry  and  sentiment  makes  yet  further  claims 
on  our  admiration  by  its  technical  qualities  ;  a  difficult  problem  of 
chiaroscuro  is  solved  with  supreme  ease  and  brilliance,  and  the 
execution  throughout  has  all  the  delicate  finish  of  a  miniature. 

In  a  letter  of  March,  1776,  Mengs  writes  thus  to  Antonio  Ponz  : 
"  At  a  first  glance,  only  Christ  and  the  angel,  with  the  brightness 
surrounding  them,  are  distinguishable  ;  a  darkness  as  of  night  over- 
spreads all  the  rest  ;  on  closer  examination,  however,  one  discerns 
infinite  gradations  of  light  and  atmosphere.  The  approaching  captors 
of  Christ  are  barely  perceptible,  nor  are  the  forms  of  the  trees 
indicated  by  any  distinct  stroke  or  touch  beyond  the  spot  where  the 
disciples  are  sleeping  ;  but  as  the  objects  approach  more  closely  to  the 
light,  we  distinguish  leaves,  plants,  a  tree-trunk  with  the  crown  of 
thorns  and  cross  below.  The  radiance  of  the  Saviour's  face  lights  up 
the  picture.  But  this  radiance  comes  from  above,  as  if  from  heaven, 
and  is  rellected  from  the  Saviour  on  to  the  figure  of  the  angel."  ^ 
The  picture  has  a  legend,  which  Lomazzo  has  recorded.  Cor- 
reggio,  he  says,  "  was  accustomed  always  to  value  his  works  at  a  very 
low  price,  and  having  on  one  occasion  to  pay  a  bill  of  four  or  five  siiidi 
to  an  apothecary  in  his  native  city,  he  painted  him  a  Christ  praying  in 
the  Garden,  which  he  executed  with  all  possible  care."  "  This  curious 
anecdote  evidently  owes  its  origin  rather  to  the  fable  of  Correggio's 
poverty,  than  to  that  of  his  supposed  depreciation  of  his  own  works. 

We  must  also  reject  the  suggestion  made  by  Lodovico  Antonio 
David  to  Muratori  in  a  letter  of  April  4,  1705.  "  I  was  told," 
he  says,  "  by  a  professor  who  is  my  friend,  that  many  years 
ago  the  Marchese  Bonifazio  Rangoni  showed  him  an  account- 
book     of    the     end     of    the     sixteenth     century,    which    belonged    to 

'  The  above  description  aiiplies  to  tlic  work  in  its  original  state,  as  shown  in  old 
engravings.     It  has  darkened  considerably,  and  much  of  the  detail  is  now  lost. 

-  Bottari,  Raccolta  cU  lettere  artistidie,  vi.  p.  320.     See  also  Frizzoni,  op.  cil.  p.  359. 
•'   T,tca  dd  Icinpio  delta  pittura.Y.   115.      NFilan,   1590. 


^    -. 


■  * 

•«w^/!; 

^  -^^J«- 

_'»*vi/t 

"CHRIST    IN    'I'HK    CARDKN    OF   (iETHSKN[.\\K  -  23;, 

(onte  Ckiudio  Rangoni,  who  lived  in  the  time  of  Correggio.  One  of 
the  items  noted  was  a  sum  of  forty-five  Modenese  liir  for  a  picture  of 
Christ  in  the  Garden  of  Gcthscinane,  painted  by  the  said  Correggio  in 
1520,  and  paid  for  in  the  month  of  March."  ^ 

As  INIeyer  very  justly  remarks,  this  entry  in  an  account-book  later 
by  some  half  century  than  the  event  is  in  itself  suspicious."  15ut 
we  have  more  solid  grounds  for  classing  the  story  among  the  innu- 
merable fables  which  have  grown  up  round  Correggio's  works.  In  the 
first  place,  no  trace  of  the  book  has  ever  been  discovered.  Secondly, 
Count  Claudio  Rangoni  was  only  twelve  years  old  in  1520,  "an  age 
not  admissible  as  that  of  a  IMcecenas  or  giver  of  commissions."  Finally, 
in  a  letter  written  in  1584  by  a  member  of  the  Rangoni  family  (Fulvio), 
which  we  have  lately  examined,  this  very  picture  is  discussed,  but 
there  is  not  the  faintest  hint  that  the  work  itself,  or  a  replica,  or  copy 
was  ever  in  INIodena,  and  in  the  possession  of  the  Rangoni. 

The  true  history  of  the  picture  is  given  by  \^asari,  who  tells  us 
that  it  was  at  Reggio  in  his  time,  and  calls  it  "  the  most  excellent 
and  beautiful  thing  by_  him  that  is  to  be  seen."  -^ 

Fulvio  Rangoni's  letter  of  March  16,  15S4,  confirms  and  amplifies 
Vasari's  notice  of  the  work.  From  it  we  learn  that  the  owner  of  the 
picture  was  one  Francesco  Maria  Signoretti,  who  is  known  to  have 
been  enrolled  among  the  members  of  the  College  of  Medicine.  It 
further  states  that  some  few  years  before,  the  sculptor  Pompeo  Leoni 
wished  to  buy  it  for  the  King  of  Spain,  and  negotiated  all  the  pre- 
liminaries of  the  purchase,  but  finally  drew  back  when  he  found  the 
owner  determined  not  to  part  with  his  picture  for  less  than  five 
hundred  scitdi.  This  information  was  all  addressed  to  Duke  Al- 
fonso II.  of  Fste,  who-  was  anxious  to  make  a  collection  in  his  castle 
at  Ferrara.^  Six  years  later,  Lomazzo  tells  us  that  the  picture  had 
been  sold  to  Piero  Visconti  for  four  hundred  saidi.  It  cannot  therefore 
have  been  the  example  seen  by  Sandrart  at  Modena  about  1628.^ 

1  G.  Campori,  Lctfere  arfistiche  uiediSc,  p.  539.     Modena,  1866. 

2  Correggio,  x^.Zro-  "   Vite/xx.y.  .17-  _ 

■»  Ad.  Venturi,  Delia  provcnicnza  di  due  ,/i/adn  del  Correggio.  Arte  et  Stona,  year  111. 
no.  4.     Florence,  1884. 

5  Sandrart,  no  doubt,  saw  one  of  the  early  copies.     Among  the  more  notable  of  these 

II    II 


^34  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGOIO 

The  original  was  sold  by  the  Visconti  for  seven  hundred  and  fifty 
pistoles  to  the  Marchese  di  Caracena,  Governor  of  Milan,  who  bought 
it  on  commission  for  Philip  IV.  of  Spain. ^  After  the  battle  of 
Vittoria,  it  was  found  in  Joseph  Bonaparte's  carriage  by  one  of 
Wellington's  colonels.  The  Duke,  with  chivalrous  generosity,  hastened 
to  restore  it  to  Ferdinand  VII.,  and  the  King,  not  to  be  outdone  In 
courtesy,  presented  it  to  the  Duke.  It  is  now  one  of  the  treasures  of 
Apsley  House. 

The  N'o/i  me  tangerc  in  the  Prado  at  Madrid  is  twice  mentioned 
by  Vasari,  who  describes  it  as  the  property  of  the  Hercolani,  a  noble 
family  of  Bologna.-'  The  statement  is  confirmed  by  Pietro  Lamo  in 
his  Graticola  di  Bol-ogiia,  written  about  1560:  "In  the  house  of  the 
Conte  Augustino  Arcolano  there  is  a  Christ  in  tlic  Garden,  with  the 
Magdalen  at  his  feet,  a  most  beautiful  work  by  the  hand  of  Master  da 
Coreglo."  -^ 

It  afterwards  belonged  successively  to  Cardinal  Aldobrandini  and 
to  Cardinal  Ludovisi.  It  then  passed  into  Spain,  and  was  presented 
to  Philip  IV.  by  Don  Ramiro  Nuhes  de  Gusman,  Duke  of  Medina  de 
las  Torres.  Charles  II.  placed  it  in  the  sacristy  of  the  Escorial.^ 
The  praises  of  Vasari,  who  speaks  of  it  first  as  "  a  very  beautiful 
thing,"  and  then  as  "so  fine  and  mellow  in  execution,  that  one  could 
imagine  nothing  to  excel  it,"  caused  Meyer  to  doubt  the  authenti- 
city of  the  Madrid  example.  He  suggests  that  the  original  may 
rather  have  been  the  picture  of  the  same  sulsject  formerly  In  the 
Queen  of  Sweden's  collection,  which  passed  into  the  Orleans  Gallery, 
and  so  to  England.-' 

Meyer's   opinion,  however,   found    few  supporters.     The  beautiful 

is  one  acquired  ljy  the  National  Gallery  with  the  Angerstein  collection  in  1S24,  and  one 
in  the  Ufiizi,  numbered  10S8.  It  has  been  suggested  that  the  example  in  London  may 
be  a  replica.  For  other  copies  see  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  101  ;  Meyer,  pp.  335-336  ;  Martini, 
p.  209,  and  Lcttcm  sopra  iiu  dipiitto  del  Cornxiio  rapprcsciitante  Crista  ncl/'  orto. 
Milan,  1801. 

'  Mengs,  ii.  p.  177;  Ratti,  p.  i:;o;  Tiraboschi,  vi.  j).  280;  Meyer,  pj).  150-153  et 
seq.     Richter,  \).  26  ;  M.  C.  Heaton,  \).  32,  etc. 

Vite,  iv.  p.  116;  vi.  p.  470.  ^  P.  13.     Bologna,  1S44. 

■•    Vite,  vi.  ]).  116,  note  2;  Mengs,  p.  179  ;  Pungileoni,  i.  jip.  103-104;  ii.  p.  151. 

'■  Correggio,  p.  135  ei  seq.,  and  p.  356  ct  scq. 


Ah , 


blaster  Jj 


4*#«A\ 


NOLI    ME    TAN(;RRE"  235 

little,  canvas  with  tli^ures  half  the  size  of  life,  in  the  Prado,  is  re- 
cognised as  genuine,  although  it  has  suffered  considerably,  first  by 
the  retouching  of  some  early  restorer,  and  latterly,  by  the  severe 
cleaning  to  which  it  was  subjected  by  Jose  Madrazo  in  order  to  remove 
the  over-paints.  Jt;sus,  with  hair  flowing  upon  his  shoulders,  and  a 
long  mantle,  which  falls  from  his  shoulders  to  his  t'eet,  turns  to  look 
at  the  Magdalen,  pointing  heavenwards.  The  latter,  a  richly  dressed 
figure,  throws  herself  on  her  knees,  and  fixes  a  yearning  gaze  upon  the 
Saviour's  face.  A  gardener's  tools  lie  scattered  on  the  ground.  Trees 
and  cliffs  rise  in  the  distance,  and  beyond,  a  broad  valley  with  a  few 
buildings. 

Gustavo  Frizzoni  writes  thus  of  the  picture  :  "  Although  this  work 
must  be  reckoned  among  the  first  of  those  he  painted  after  his  achieve- 
ment of  a  perfectly  independent  and  original  manner,  it  already 
exhibits  the  utmost  intensity  of  facial  expression  and  of  dramatic 
action,  the  utmost  splendour  of  illumination.  The  master  seems  to 
have  stolen  his  tints  from  circumambient  air  and  sunshine.  No  painter 
has  equalled  Correggio  in  the  rendering  of  the  impulsive  fer\our  with 
which  the  Magdalen  casts  herself  at  the  feet  of  the  master,  who 
appears  to  her  serene  and  glorious,  in  a  landscape  which  seems  to 
reflect  the  peace  and  radiance  of  the  divine  figure.  With  Morelli,  we 
find  ourselves  at  a  loss  to  understand  the  doubts  cast  upon  the 
authenticity  of  the  work  by  Correggio's  biographer,  the  late;  Dr. 
Julius  Meyer.  If  there  be  one  of  his  pictures  above  all  others  which 
has  retained  the  impress  of  original  creation  in  spite  of  the  havoc 
worked  by  a  series  of  vicissitudes,  a  rigorous  cleaning  among  the 
muTiber,  we  should  say  it  was  this  very  Noli  iue  taiigcrc.^'  ^ 

The  art  of  Correggio,  with  its  deep  sense  of  beauty,  and  its  tender 
sensibility,  was  peculiarly  fitted  to  give  life  and  grace  to  the  figure  of 
the  Magdalen.  He  introduced  it  in  many  of  his  large  compositions, 
and  made  it  the  subject  of  several  separate  studies.  But  while  nearly 
all  of  the  former  have  come  down  to  us,  not  one  of  his  single  figures  of 
the  gentle  penitent  has  survived.     We  have  seen  that  he  painted  one 

1  /  capolavoti  dcUa  Piuacoteca  del  Pmdo  in  Madrid.  {Archivio  storio  dclF  ,irf,: 
year  vi.  p.  313.     Rome,  1893.) 


236  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

such  picture  for  Giovanni  Guidotti  of  Roncopo,  the  priest  of  Albinea, 
in  15 17.  Eleven  years  later,  on  September  3,  1528,  Veronica 
Gambara  wrote  to  the  Marchesa  Isabella  to  tell  her  of  a  "  master- 
piece"  just  completed  by  Correggio,  representing  the  Magdalen.^ 
"  I  should  account  myself  greatly  wanting  in  my  duty  towards  your 
iLxccllency,  if  I  did  not  hasten  to  give  you  some  information  con- 
cerning the  masterpiece  just  completed  by  our  Master  Antonio, 
knowing  how  greatly  it  will  please  a  judge  of  such  things  like  your 
Excellency.  It  represents  the  Magdalen  in  the  desert,  doing  penance 
in  a  gruesome  cave.  She  kneels  to  the  right,  her  clasped  hands  raised 
to  heaven,  in  the  act  of  imploring  pardon  for  her  sins.  The  graceful 
attitude,  the  expression  of  intense  and  lofty  sorrow,  and  the  exquisite 
beauty  of  the  face  are  altogether  wonderful,  and  all  who  see  the  work 
are  astounded  at  it.  In  this  picture  he  has  touched  the  sublime  of  that 
art  of  which  he  is  so  great  a  master." 

Both  pictures  have  been  lost  for  centuries,  and,  strange  to  say,  no 
mention  of  them  is  to  be  found  anywhere  but  in  the  two  letters  of 
Guidotti  and  Veronica. 

We  must  now  make  a  single  exception  to  a  rule  we  proposed  to 
observe  throughout  this  work,  which  was,  to  avoid  dissertations  on 
pictures  falsely  attributed  to  Correggio.  The  celebrity  of  the  so-called 
Ixcadiiig  Magdalen  at  Dresden,  the  inclusion  of  which  among 
Correggio's  works  has  been  authoritatively  forbidden  by  modern 
criticism,  compels  a  brief  examination  of  its  history.- 

Morelli,  attacking  the  problem  boldly,  in  the  teeth  of  popular 
enthusiasm  and  parti  pris,  declared  that  this  Magdalen  was  never 
heard  of  before  the  eighteenth  century.  He  gave  it  as  his  opinion 
that  the  smooth  and  affected  grace  of  the  creation  was  due,  not  to  any 
Italian  painter,  but  to  some  Fleming  of  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  or 
beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  further  pointed  out  that  no 
artist  had  painted  upon  copper  before  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century, 

1  Willelmo  Braghirolli,  Dei  rapporti  di  Federigo  II.,  Gonzaga,  con  Antonio  Allfgri  da 
Correggio.     {Giomaie  d'erudizioiie  artisfica,  \.  \\  325.     Perugia,  1S74.) 

-  Giov.  Morelli,  Italian  Painters,  ii.  j).  15S.  Liibke,  Essai  d'histoire  dc  Fart,  ii.  ]>.  254. 
.Sec  also  Karl  Wocrmanii,  A'ata/og  dcr  I;.  Gemaldfgalcrie  zii  Dresden,  \\  Si.  Dresden, 
1887. 


Tur:  ••  RF..\i)T\<;  m.\(;i)AT,i-,x  "  .\i  1)Ri:si)i;n  2;,7 

and  concluded  by  sayiny  that  a  careful  examination  of  the  picture 
inclined  him  to  attribute  it  to  Adrien  van  dcr  W'erff,  a  master  whose 
every  characteristic  appeared  in  the  work,  notably  his  colour,  as  in  the 
crude  dazzling-  blue  of  the  drapery,  his  treat  incut  of  landscape,  as  in  the 
minute  rendering  of  every  stone  and  leaf,  his  ]:)eculiarities  o{  type,  as  in 
the  long  nails,  their  edges  catching  the  light.  Even  the  surface  cracks, 
he  remarks,  agree  exactly  with  those  in  Adrien  van  der  Werff's  pictures. 


Deferring,  however,  to  some  lingering  doubt,  he  adds  the  following  : 
''It  may  be,  perhaps,  that  the  picture  was  not  painted  by  Van  der 
Werff  himself,  but  by  some  contemporary  and  fellow-countryman.  In  no 
case,  however,  can  it  be  accepted  as  the  work  of  an  Italian  ;  much  less 
of  an  Italian  who  flourished  in  the  first  thirty  years  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  It  may,  however,  be  a  copy  by  some  foreign  artist  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  from  an  original  of  the  school  of  the  Carracci." 

Morelli's  opinion  may  be   implicitly  relied  on  as  far  as  Correggio's 


238 


ANTONIO    DA   rORREGGIO 


authorship  of  the  work  is  concerned.      But  we  think  he  is  mistaken  in 

attributing  it  to  Adrien  van  der  Werff. 

There  is  a  copy  of  the  picture  at  Rcgorio,  painted  in  the  first  half  of 

the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury, as  the  Uffizi 
copy  appears  to 
have  been,  though 
probably  not  by 
Ijronzino,  as  was 
formerly  sup- 

posed. But  even 
admitting  that  no 
great  weight  can 
be  attached  to  this 
"'  '""""''  hypothetical  date, 

From  an  engraving  in  the  Palatine  Library,   Parma  ^  ' 

we  cannot  refuse 
a  certain  importance  to  the  persistence  with  which  a  certain  Simon 
Lelmi,  a  painter  of  Citta  di  Castello,  asks  for  leave  to  copy  Correggio's 
Jl/ao//a/e)i,  in  a  letter  written  in  1682,  and  recently  published.  "  This 
is  the  first  time,"  writes  Venturi,  "  that  we  have  succeeded  in  finding 
any  mention  of  the  famous  picture  Morelli  now  ascribes  to  Adrien  van 
der  Werff.  The  document  above  quoted  throws  considerable  doubt  on 
the  famous  critic's  conclusions."  It  is,  indeed,  not  unreasonable  to 
suppose  that  if  there  was  a  picture  at  Modena  in  16S2  ascribed  to 
Correggio,  it  had  probably  been  there  for  some  time.  But  supposing 
it  to  have  been  in  the  city  only  ten  years,  the  Dutch  master  was  a 
boy  of  thirteen  in  1672,  and  this  picture,  even  if  a  copy,  was  never 
painted  by  any  boy  of  thirteen. 

If,  however,  we  accept  the  desperate  hypothesis  that  the  picture 
was  bought  by  the  Duke  of  Modena  the  same  year  that  Lelmi  wished 
to  copy  it,  we  must  still  remember  that  Van  der  Werff  "was  only 
twenty-three  at  the  time  ;  and  it  is  hardly  credible  that  a  picture  by  the 
young  Dutchman  should  already  have  become  famous  as  the  work 
of  Correggio."  ' 

1   Ad.  ^'cntl^■i,  la  A'.  GalUiia  csteine,  pp.  290.  29T,  30S,  359 


Si,   Calherine  Reading. 

(HA»:rioN  coiirr  lAi.Ati:.) 


No  question  has  ever  been  raised  as  to  the  authenticity  of  the 
Reading  St.  Catherine  at  Hampton  Court.  The  author  of  the  Guide 
to  the  Italian  Pictnirs  of  this  collection  assigns  it  to  CorregL^io's 
last  years,  pronouncing  it  a  work  of  the  most  refined  sensibility, 
and  very  modern  in  teeling.  No  trace  of  archaism  indeed  appears 
in  the  delicate  face  or  in  the  technical  treatment.' 

We  must  not  conclude  without  any  mention  of  two  old  engravings 
in  a  volume  in  the  Palatine  Library  at  Parma,  which  contains  many 
reproductions,  new  and  old,  of  Correggio's  works.  The  two  in 
question  form  a  pair,  and  are  indicated  in  the  catalogue  as  of  great 
value. 

One  represents  St.  Joseph,  reclining  on  the  ground,  his  carpenter's 
tools  around  him.  He  raises  himself  on  his  left  elbow,  surprised  by 
the  apparition  of  two  angels.-  The  subject  of  the  other  is  .St.  Jerome 
in  the  desert,  gazing  at  a  crucih.x  supported  by  an  angel  in  the  fork 
of  a  tree-trunk.  Two  cherubs  hover  above,  examining  the  saint  with 
naive  curiosity."^ 

In  both  the  plates  there  are  strong  traces  of  Correggesque  in- 
fluence, but  the 
somewhat  exag- 
gerated and  over- 
insistent  model- 
ling of  the  bodies 
is     calculated     to 


rouse  suspicion  ; 
though  the  en- 
graver, evidently 
a  member  of  the 
Bolognese  school, 
may,  of  course, 
have  infused  a 
sentiment  of  his  own    into  the  work.      A  comparison   of   many    old 

1  Mary  Logan,  Giu'dc,  etc.,  p.  41.  2  ■^^_  3,027. 

3  No.  3,110.  A  St.  Jerome  by  Correggio  is  included  in  the  inventory  of  the  Duke 
of  Mantua's  pictures,  made  in  1627  ;  but  it  is  described  as  a  half-length  figure  with  a 
skull.     (D'Arco,  up.  cit.,  ii.  p.  161.) 


the  P.-ilaliiie  Library,  Pariim. 


240  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGlO 

prints  with  Correggio's  originals  shows,  indeed,  how  the  engravers 
of  the  sixteenth  century  contrived  to  render  the  more  dehcate  and 
graceful  portions  of  his  work  confused  and  laboured.  The  two 
cherubs  of  the  5/.  Jerome,  with  their  expression  of  innocent  curiosity, 
the  little  angel  intent  on  the  support  of  the  cross,  the  type  of  the  saint 
himself,  the  admirable  foreshortening  of  the  angels  who  appear  to 
St.  Joseph,  and  the  features  of  the  latter,  all  bear  the  impress  of 
Correggio's  genius  in    the  last  years  of  his  activity. 

The  problem,  however,  is  one  we  cannot  hope  to  solve  without 
the  help  of  the  originals.  Many  of  Correggio's  scholars  and  imitators 
approached  him  very  closely  in  their  types,  and  the  exaggeration  of 
contours  observable  in  the  prints  may  have  been  faithfully  reproduced 
from  the  original  pictures.  The  shape  of  the  plates  again,  the  breadth 
of  which  is  considerably  greater  than  the  height,  was  one  much 
affected  by  the  Bolognese  school. 

It  is  impossible  to  be  too  cautious  in  discriminating  between  the 
works  of  several  painters  who  flourished  about  1600.  But  there  is 
nothing  in  these  two  prints  to  make  it  improbable  that  the  originals 
were  early  works  of  Giovanni  Lanfranco. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE    FRESCOES    IN    PARMA    CATHEDRAL 

THE  "MADONNA  BELLA  SCALa"— THE  "  ANNUNCL\TION  " — THE  CUrOI,A  OF  THE 
CATHEDRAL — THE  TENDENTIVES  AND  THE  BALUSTRADE —THE  CANON's  JEST — 
DRAWINGS — THE    FAME    OF    THE   WORK 

BEFORE      beginning      the 
frescoes  in  the  cupola  of 
Parma     Cathedral,    Cor- 
reggio  executed  two  minor  com- 
missions,  the   Annunciation   and 
the  Madonna  dclla  Scala. 

Meyer  supposed  these  two 
frescoes  to  have  been  painted 
probably  in  1520,  either  imme- 
diately before,  or  while  the  artist 
was  at  work  on  the  cupola  of 
San  Giovanni  Evangelista.  I  lis 
ascription  of  them  to  this  date 
seems  to  us  a  proof  that  he  had 
not  studied  their  technique  very 
carefully.      The    blending  of   the  colours,  the   perfect    fusion    of   the 

I  I 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


chiaroscuro,  in  which  no  trace  of  brushing  is  discernible,  the  form  of 
the  hands,  with  their  long  fingers,  their  sinuous  lines  and  curves,  and 
the  absence  of  all  angularity  in  the  treatment  of  the  joints,  the  type 
of  the  Virgin,  of  the  angel,  and  of  the  slim  pntlo  who  takes  the  place 
of  his  robuster  brethren  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo,  or  in  the  dome 
of  San  Giovanni — all  proclaim  the  pictorial,  and,  as  a  consequence,  the 

chronological  con- 
nection between 
these  two  works 
and  the  frescoes 
in  the  cathedral, 
making  it  almost 
certain  that  they 
were  executed 
about      the      year 

1524- 

There  has  been 
a  great  diversity  of 
opinion  as  to  the 
place  for  which 
the  Madonna  della 
Scala  was  origin- 
ally painted.  Some 
declare  it  to  have 
been  the  outer  wall 
over  the  eastern 
gate  of  Parma, 
whence  it  is  sup- 
posed to  have 
been  removed  and  brought  inside;  the  city,  an  oratory  being  built  for 
its  preservation.  Some  say  it  was  painted  by  Correggio  on  the  wall  of 
a  friend's  house,  which  stood  on  the  ramparts  near  the  church  of  San 
Michelc,  and  others,  again,  that  it  adorned  a  room  of  the  gate-house.^ 

'    RulM,  Cwz/V/,;   di  Pnrw.r,  p.  72  ;   Ratti,  |'.  76.     .Sec   also    Pungileoni,   ii.  p.   161,  and 
Martini,  \>\>    108  and  i  13. 


Fresco  by  Corregijio,  in  t 


••THE    MADONNA    DELLA   SCALA"  2.13 

Vasari  says  that  Correggio  "  painted  Our  Lady,  with  the  Child  in 
her  arms,  over  one  of  the  city  gates  ;  the  dehcate  colours  of  this  fresco 
were  a  marvel  to  behold,  and  gained  him  infinite  praise,  even  from 
strangers,  who  had  seen  none  of  his  other  works."  ^  The  testimony 
of  Vasari,  who,  passing  through  Parma  in  1542,  entered  by  this  gate, 
and  saw  the  fresco  some  twelve  years  before  it  was  removed  to  the 
oratory,  seems  to  us  conclusive.-  The  painting  was  evidently  neither 
on  the  house  of  a  private  person  nor  in  a  room  of  the  gate-house. 
Further  proofs  are  forthcoming  if  such  be  needed. 

In  all  plans  of  the  city  of  Parma  before  181 2,  the  little  shrine  of 
Santa  Maria  della  Scala  appears  on  the  bastion  confronting  the  Via  di 
San  Michele,  on  the  spot  where  the  gate  used  to  be  before  Paul  III. 
strengthened  the  city  walls  by  the  erection  of  new  redoubts.  The 
name,  dclla  Scala  (of  the  Stairs),  was  derived  from  the  little  flight  of 
steps  leading  up  to  the  chapel,  which  rose  above  the  ramparts.  One 
of  the  measures  adopted  in  Paul  III.'s  fortifications  was  the  removal 
of  gates  commanding  the  entrances  to  streets,  and  the  erection  of  solid 
bastions  in  their  places.  The  introduction  of  artillery  had  forced  upon 
military  architects  the  necessity  of  closing,  strengthening,  and  protect- 
ing the  mouths  of  the  longer  and  wider  streets,  and  of  placing  the 
gates  over  against  houses  or  walls.  When  the  old  gate  of  San 
Michele  was  closed,  and  another  opened  on  the  north,  the  constructors 
of  the  new  bastion  carefully  preserved  the  wall  on  which  Correggio 
had  painted  his  Madonna. 

If  we  are  to  accept  the  legend  that  the  fresco  was  on  the  wall  of  a 
private  house,  we  must  further  suppose  this  house  to  have  been  on  the 
city  wall.  But  it  is  highly  improbable  that  such  an  obstacle  to  the  free 
perambulation  of  the  ramparts  would  have  been  permitted,  more 
especially  at  a  point  immediately  opposite  to  the  wealthy  Via  Emilia. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  is  a  matter  of  history  that  this  was  the  site  of 
the  gate  until  1545.^ 

There  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  the  piece  of  wall   on  which  the 

Madonna  is  painted  was  removed  from  some  other  spot.     When  it  was 

taken  to  the  Palazzo  della  Pilotta  in  18 12,  there  were  no  signs  of  any 

'    Viti,  iv.  p.  114.        -  Ibid.  vi.  p.  670.       ■■  B.  Angeli,  Storia  di  Parma,  pp.  13  and  531. 


244  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

previous  transfer,  and  it  was  found  necessary  to  saw  through  the  wall 
below  it,  the  foundations  of  which  were  incorporated  with  the  bastion. 

The  history  of  the  fresco  is  therefore  a  very  simple  one.  It  was 
painted  by  Correggio  on  the  inner  side  of  the  eastern  gateway  of 
Parma,  that  the  smiles  of  Mother  and  Babe  might  speed  the  out-going 
traveller  on  his  road.  When  the  exigencies  of  the  time  and  the  safety 
of  the  city  demanded  the  erection  of  a  bastion  In  place  of  the  gate,  the 
reverence  in  which  the  work  was  held   caused  several  of   the  citizens 

to  combine  with  the  confraternity 
of  St.  Michael  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  piece  of  wall  on  which 
the  fresco  was  painted,  and  to 
subscribe  a  sum  sufficient  for  the 
building  of  an  oratory,  in  which 
the  fragment  might  serve  as  altar- 
piece.  Permission  to  form  an 
association  for  this  purpose  and 
to  carry  out  the  work  was  not 
easily  obtainable  in  those  days, 
and  one  of  the  subscribers  who 
lived  in  Rome,  and  afterwards 
left  a  legacy  to  the  chapel,  had 
to  exert  himself  considerably  be- 
in  .1,  w  nn.r  Ml,' in,  '  ''^''^  '*■  ^^'^^  grautcd.      Finally,  iu 

the  spring   of    1555,   the    notary 
Cristoforo  della  Torre  drew  up  the  deed  empowering  the  foundation. 

The  oratory  was  subsequently  decorated  by  Tinti,  and  two  pictures 
were  painted  for  the  side  altars,  one  by  himself,  the  other  by  the 
Cremonese,  Malosso.  In  1S12,  however,  the  chapel  was  pulled  down 
to  make  way  for  the  barrier  of  San  Michele.  The  beauty  of  the  altar- 
fresco  ensured  its  careful  preservation  ;  It  was  clamped  with  irons,  and 
transferred  to  the  gallery,  where  it  still  remains.^ 

I  Pietro  da  Lama,  Atti  ih/P  Aaadcmia  e  del  Museo  parmensL  MSS.  in  tlic  Museum 
of  I'arma,  i.  pp.  186,  202,  217,  and  230.  Sec  Aradoniia  della  Scala,  documents  in  the 
archives  of  the  Parma  Calleiy.     The  transfer  was  carried  out  by  Pietro  Biccliieri. 


"'I'HE    MADONNA    DELLA    SCALA "  '  245 

Who  commissioned  Correggio  to  paint  the  fresco  ?  It  does  not 
appear  from  any  existing  records  that  it  was  ordered  by  the  commune, 
to  whom  the  gate  belonged.  It  is  well  known,  however,  that  a  private 
citizen  was  often  permitted  to  decorate  a  public  monument,  or  some 
portion  of  it. 


There  is  a  sketch  of  the  Madonna  dclla  Scala  in  the  Weimar 
Museum,  which,  like  the  copy  in  the  church  of  Fiorenzuola  d'  Arda, 
reproduces  the  full-length  figure.''  Unhappily,  the  lower  part  of  the 
original  has  disappeared.  It  was  no  doubt  cut  away  when  the  fresco 
was  removed  to  the  gallery,  either  because  the  colours  had  tlown,  or 
because  it  had  sustained  some  damage  during  the  work  of  transfer,  or 
of  clamping. 

1  There  is  alsn  a  drawing  of  the  Madonna  and  Child  in  the  Britisli  Museum,  which 
is  evidently  a  first  sketch  for  this  fresco,  though  the  attitude  is  different. 


246  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

In  the  Weimar  drawing,  which  has  every  appearance  of  a  genuine 
slvetch  by  Correggio,  a  blank  heraldic  shield,  surmounted  by  a  bishop's 
mitre,  lies  at  the  feet  of  the  Virgin,  who  is  seated  on  the  steps  of  a 
temple.  If  the  drawing  is  authentic,  as  it  appears  to  be,  who  could 
the  bishop  have  been  who  ordered  the  fresco  ?  The  name  which 
naturally  suggests  itself  is  that  of  Alessandro  Farnese,  Bishop  of 
Parma,  afterwards  Pope  Paul  III.  ;  '  but  on  reflection  it  seems  unlikely 
that  he,  who  never  lived  in  the  city,  where  his  place  was  supplied  by 
sufiragans,  should  have  given  such  a  commission.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  is  of  interest  to  note  that  Nicolo  Urbani  of  Bracciano,  of  the  Order  of 
the  Hermits  of  St.  Augustine,  Bishop  of  Lida,  and  one  of  Alessandro 
Farnese's  suffragans,  lived  exactly  opposite  the  church  of  San  Michele, 
and  therefore  close  to  the  gate  itself.^ 

The  Babe,  encircled  by  his  mother's  arms,  and  the  figure  of  the 
Madonna  herself,  as  she  bends  over  him  with  a  smile  of  infinite 
tenderness,  form  a  line  at  once  perfectly  natural  and  supremely 
beautiful.'^  The  Child  is  a  perfect  realisation  of  Dante's  image  of  the 
infant 

"  die  inver  la  mamma 

Tende  le  braccia  poi  che  il  latte  prese 

Per  I'anima  che  insin  di  fuor  1'  infiamma." 

It  is  sad  to  see  how  the  original  brilliance  of  the  fresco  has  passed 
away  from  it,  though,  indeed,  it  seems  almost  a  miracle  that  it  has 
retained  so  much  of  its  beauty,  when  we  remember  that  for  thirty 
years  it  was  exposed  to  all  the  severity  of  the  weather ;  that  the 
faithful  pierced  it  with  holes,  in  order  to  fix  silver  crowns  on  the  two 
heads,  and  hang  relics  and  votive  offerings  round  the  group,  and  that, 
finally,  it  was  removed  from  its  place,  bound  together  with  irons,  and 
brought  from  the  opposite  side  of  the  city  to  the  Palazzo  della  Pilotta. 

1  Giovanni  AUodi,  Serie  cronologica  del  Vescovi  di  Parma,  ii.  p.  ii.     Parma,  1856. 

■^  Francesco  Cherbi,  Le  grandi  epoche  della  Mesa  vescovile  di  Parma,  ii.  p.  312. 
Parma,  1835-1839.  The  house  of  the  Urbani  was  in  the  possession  of  the  Bernini  family 
in  the  eighteenth  century,  and  a  marble  with  the  arms  of  the  bishop,  with  his  mitre,  and 
the  initials  N.  E.  (Nicolaus  Episcopus),  was  preserved  by  them. 

^  There  is  a  drawing  in  red  pencil  by  the  master  in  the  Louvre  representing  Charity, 
with  three  children,  one  of  whom  she  raises  on  her  left  arm,  forming  a  line  almost 
identical  with  that  of  the  babe  in  the  Aradoi/ia  della  Saxla. 


"THE    ANNUNCIATION"  247 

The  contemporary  fresco  of  the  Annunciation  has  suffered  far 
more  severely,  and  is  a  complete  wreck,  beyond  the  power  of  the 
restorer.  It  was  a  lunette,  painted  by  Corrcggio  for  the  church  of 
the  Fathers  of  the  Annunciation  in  Parma.  The  Ixiilding  was 
demolished  in  1546  to  make  room  for  the  keep  or  fortalicc  constructed 
by  Pier  Luigi  Farnese.^  In  this  emergency,  says  Vasari,  the  Fathers 
"  battened  the  surrounding  wall  with  pieces  of  wood,  clamped  with 
iron,  and  cutting  out  the  fresco  by  degrees,  managed  to  save  it, 
and  fix  it  into  a  safer  place  in  the  wall  of  their  monastery."-  When 
they  afterwards  built  a  new  church  in  the  quarter  of  the  city  known 
as  the  Capo  di  Pontc,  the  fresco  was  placed  to  the  left  of  the  entrance, 
"  where  an  altar  was  raised  by  the  noble  family  of  Aiani."^ 

In  1832  the  Academy  of  Parma  bethought  itself  of  the  fresco,  and 
took  steps  to  eftect  its  removal,  and  so  save  it  from  final  destruction. 
The  necessary  concession  was  not  obtained,  however,  until  1875.* 
But  the  transfer,  which  was  carried  out  early  in  the  following  year, 
gave  the  coup  dc  grace  to  the  work.'^' 

The  ruined  fragment  that  has  survived  is  in  the  Parma  Gallery. 
All  that  can  now  be  distinguished  is  the  meek  face  of  the  Virgin,  and 
the  fair  head  of  the  angel.  There  are  indications  of  two  attendant 
cherubs,  but  the  forms  are  almost  obliterated.  Something  of  the 
original  composition  may  be  discerned  through  the  blotches  and 
discolorations  with  the  help  of  old  engravings,  which  show  the  angel 
fiying  over  a  cloud  in  which  four  cherubs  are  sporting.  His  right 
hand  is  raised  to  heaven,  and  with  his  left  he  points  to  the  Holy 
Spirit,  hovering  with  outspread  wings  over  the  Virgin's  head.     Turning 


1  Aless.  Sanseverino,  on  p.  23  of  his  Notizic  storichc  artistichc,  MSS.  in  the  Museum 
of  P.irma,  says  of  this  fresco,  "  It  belongs  by  right  to  the  Casa  Scutellari." 

-    F/A-,  iv.  p.  1 14. 

3  Fra  Giovanni  Francesco  Malazappi  da  Carpi,  Croniche  della  provincia  di  Bologna 
dci  Frati  Minori  OsservajtU  compostc  nd  1580.  MS.  in  the  archives  of  the  province  of 
Bologna,  fol.  170.  Baistrocchi,  Notizic  dei  pittori,  MS.  no.  1106,  in  the  Miscellanea,  in 
the  Royal  Library  of  Parma.      Rata,  Gitida,  p.  19. 

<  MS.  Minutes  of  the  Academy,  iii.  p.  131. 

'•>  La  Madonna  Annitnciatn,  papers  in  the  archives  of  the  picture  gallery  of  Parma. 
.\.  Rondani  wrote  of  this  work  in  the  French  journal  L'Ar/,  vi.  p.  73  (Paris,  1S76),  and 
in  the  Gazzetta  d'ltalia,  no.  84  (Venice,  1876). 


248 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


from  the  open  book  on  the  desk  before  her,  she  listens,  with  chaste, 
downcast  eyes.^     {Sfc  headpiece  to  contents,  p.  xi.) 

We  may  now  pass  on  to  Correggio's  greatest  work. 

Down  to  the  kist  years  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  interior  of  Parma 
Cathedral  was  characterised  by  all  the  bare  austerity  usual  in  Roman- 
esque churches.     There  were,  of  course,  pictures  and  triptychs  over 


the  altars  ;  a  few  frescoes,  the  offerings  of  certain  devout  persons, 
adorned  the  walls  of  some  of  the  chapels.  The  greater  part 
of  the  transept  was  decorated  ;  -  but  the  vast  main  building,  that  is  to 
say,  the  vaults  of  the  three  aisles,  the  walls  of  the  nave,   the  cupola, 

1  A  Correggesque  drawing  in  sanguine  in  tlie  Louvre,  squared  out  for  enlarging 
seems  to  represent  an  Annunciation.  It  does  not,  however,  correspond  with  the  lunette 
described,  which  agrees  more  closely  with  a  drawing  in  the  Ambrosiana  at  Milan,  ascribed 
to  Correggio,  but  more  probably  by  some  pupil  or  imitator  (see  page  270). 

^  In  the  deed  of  1522,  assigning  the  decoration  of  a  certain  part  of  the  transept  to 
Parmigianino  and  Anselmi,  the  following  words  occur  :  Rcmovendo  illas  picliiras  quae  sunt 
de  praesenti,  or  de  l^  me  sent i  exist  elites. 


PARMA    CATHEDRAL 


and   the    presbytery    were  all    subdued  and    colourless,    displayinq-    tht 
architectural  lines  in  severe  simplicity.  h 


No   trace   remained  of  the   paintings  which  had  once  adorned  the 
facade,    and   of  which   Fra  Salimbene  tells  us,  describing  the  wrath  of 


252  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

of  the  paintings  themselves  ;  and  having  calculated   that  my  outlay  for 


7''r*"^  ci^-.//^-^^, 


,/^   A 


■>yyi  V>vl 


'>*'-*VrvnH^     yr^Xo    ^'^cKvtrii •  .,       ■  ,         ■  ,/^-f  .  ■/ 


U'-^ 


gold-leaf,  colours,  and  the  final  coat  of  cement  on   which  I  shall  paint 
will    be    loo  ducats,  I   cannot,  having  regard    to  our  own   honour  and 


«•« 


vvVvA 


COKRl'.dC.IOS    AUI'OCKAl'll    A( ;  Rl^lCMENI"  253 

that  ol  the  place,  undertake  the  work  for  less  than  1,000  gold  tlucats. 
and  the  following  appliances  :  i,  scaffoldings  ;  2,  the  mortar  preparation 
of  the  walls  ;  3,  cement  for  the  plastering  ;  4,  a  large  room,  or  enclosed 
chapel,  in  which  to  prepare  the  cartoons."  ' 

Correggio's  words  are  full  of  dignity  :  "  I  cannot,  having  regard  to 
our  own  honour  and  that  of  the  place,  undertake  the  work  for  less  than 
1,000  golil  ducats."  Far  from  depreciating  his  work,  as  a  foolish 
tradition  would  persuade  us  he  did,  he  recognises  and  respects  his  own 
powers.  And  this  intimate  consciousness  of  worth,  and  simplicity  in 
e.xpressing  it,  are  as  admirable,  on  the  one  hand,  as  on  the  other  the 
studied  humility  of  the  "charlatans  of  modesty,"  or  the  boasts  of  self- 
satisfied  incompetence  are  wearisome  and  repulsive. 

We  note  that  the  figures  1,000  are  inserted  above  an  erasure  of  the 
original  entry,  which  was  1,200  ducats.  This  gives  an  additional 
interest  to  the  autograph.  It  points  to  a  discussion  as  to  the  price 
between  the  painter  and  the  wardens  of  the  cathedral.  Correggio 
speaks  of  the  magnitude  and  the  difficulties  of  his  task,  and  the  time  it 
will  take  him  to  accomplish  it  ;  the  others  explain  that  the  finances  of 
the  Chapter  will  not  permit  them  to  offer  more.  How  was  the  gentle 
artist  to  resist  the  entreaties  of  Scipione  della  Rosa,  and  the  vision  of 
the  bands  of  saints  and  angels  with  which  he  might  people  the  lumi- 
nous dome  .''  He  meditates  for  a  while  ;  then  confesses  himself  per- 
suaded ;  the  eyes  of  all  present  are  fixed  anxiously  upon  him,  as, 
seizing  the  pen,  he  draws  two  strokes  through  the  1,200  and  writes 
1,000  above  it  ! 

As  we  have  seen,  however,  he  was  still  emj)loyed  on  the  decora- 
tions of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista.  There  was  no  occasion  for  the 
wardens  to  hasten  the  preliminary  work  of  repairing  the  cupola.  It 
was  not,  indeed,  till  a  year  later,  November  23.  1523,  that  they  com- 
missioned Messer  lorio  da  Erba  to  restore  it  inside  and  out,  including 

1  Archivio  notarile  di  Panna.  Deeds  drawn  up  by  .Slcfano  Dodi.  Alio,  Viia  del 
Pannigianino,  p.  30;  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  264;  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  1S2  ;  Martini,  p.  170; 
Meyer,  p.  462,  etc.  We  have  examined  the  original  documents,  and  have  therefore 
avoided  certain  serious  errors  of  transcription  perpetuated  by  Pungileoni,  Martini,  and 
Meyer,  such  as  the  substitution  of  the  word  cakina  where  Correggio  writes  Vultiiua,  and 
of  the  name  Arria  where  he  writes  Anianiis,  etc. 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGOIO 


the  small  columns  and  pilasters  of  the  external  gallery,  and  to  scrape 

and  cement  it  internally.      The  agreement  for  this  work  was  drawn  up 

by  Galeazzo  Piazza,  in  the   presence  of 

Scipione    Montino    della    Rosa    and    of 

Alessandro  Araldi.' 

The  first  notice  of  a  payment  made 
to  Correggio  occurs  November  29,  1526. 
He  acknowledges  having  received  on 
account  seventy-six  gold  ducats,  thirteen 
imperial  soldi,  part  of  the  first  instal- 
-^  I  I     ^\  ment  of  275  ducats,  for  his  work  in  the 

cupola,  in  the  presence  of  Don  Nicolo 
dei  Gotti,  son  of  Rolando,  syndic  and 
procurator  to  the  Chapter  of  the  great 
church  of  Parma.- 

Another  document  shows  that  on 
November  17,  1530,  he  received 
another  175  gold  ducats,  the  balance 
of  the  first  instalment.  But  enough 
of  this.'' 

The  disappearance  of  many  of  the 

books  and  documents  of  the  cathedral 

coKKECG^o.^""  "■""''""'^'' """^ ''^™'^' "''       archives  make  it  impossible  to  give  the 

history  of  Correggio's  frescoes  in  minute 

detail.      In  addition  to  the  few  entries  already  quoted,  we  find  another 

in   the   debtor  and    creditor  account-book   of  the   church,   from   which 

we    learn    that    Correggio's    heirs   were    called    upon    to    refund    140 


1  Archives  of  Parma  Cathedral,  case  i.  no.  11. 

-  Legal  archives  of  Parma.  Deeds  drawn  by  Galeazzo  Piazza,  under  above  date. 
The  street  where  Correggio  lived  in  Parma  is  mentioned  in  this  document.  Domimis 
Antoiiius  Alegris  fil.  Domini  Felegrini  de  Corigia  pictor  vicitiie  S.Johannis  Evangelishe 
pro  burgo  anteriori  sat  Pischario.  There  is  also  a  precis  of  the  deed  in  the  archives  of 
the  cathedral,  case  i.  no.  13. 

^  Archives  of  Parma  Cathedral,  case  i.  no.  17.  Pungileoni  (ii.  [1.233),  followed  by 
many  others,  adds  that  in  the  books  of  the  cathedral  there  is  an  entry  referring  to  Antonio 
in  February,  1531,  but  he  neither  specifies  the  book  nor  tiuotes  the  passage,  and  probably 
made  a  mistake. 


GENERAL   VIEW    OF   THE    DOME 


imperial  liiw  paid  to  the  painter  for  work  in  the  cupola  which  he  had 
died  before  completing.' 

We  will  now  take  a  rapid  general  survey  of  the  cupola. 

In  the  pendentives,  four  saints  are  seated  on  clouds  amidst  a  con- 
course of  youthful  angels.  The  twelve  colossal  figures  of  the  Apostles 
stand  along  the  octagonal  cornice  above,  between  the  oblong  windows, 
in  front  of  a  simulated  balustrade,  and  gaze  in  astonishment  at  the 
Assumption  of  the  \"irgin.  l-'rom  the  balustratle  rist;  eight  tall  cande- 
labra,  one  at  each  angle,  between   which    are  some   twenty-nine    boy 


or   standing  upright. 


genii,  some  seated,  some  reclining,  others 
They  converse  together,  or  gaze  upwards, 
carrying  vases  or  boughs  of  foliage  ; 
others  are  kindling  the  ilames  of  the  can- 
delabra, or  sprinkling  incense  on  those 
already  burning.  Above  them  is  a  broad 
belt  of  clouds,  and  then  a  huge  garland 
of  figures,  a  vast  glory  of  saints  and  angels, 
crowding  round  the  ascending  Virgin,  who 
soars  upwards  towards  the  radiant  sky, 
whence  a  youthful  angel  descends  in  rapid 
flight  to  greet  her. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  work  in 
detail. 

Above  the  capitals  of  the  great  pillars 
supporting  the  cupola,  in  the  thickness 
of  the  arches,  which  are  decorated  with 
a  Greek  key  pattern,  are  painted  single 
figures  in  monochrome.  Those  on  the 
soffit  of  the  arch  nearest  to  the  presby- 
tery are  by  Girolamo  Mazzola-Bedoli,  all 
the  rest  are  by  Correggio.  They  are 
carried   out  in   pale  yellow  tones,  shaded 

with  a  kind  of  bistre-colour,  and  represent  six  slightly  draped  genii 

supporting  festoons  of  foliage.     This  part  of  the  decoration  is  perfectly 

1  Liher  dchitoridii  ct  credifoniiii,  already  quoted,  UA.  i. 


256 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


preserved,  and  shows  the  mellow  richness  and  fusion  of  Correggio's 
technique  in  its  full  perfection.  The  soft,  delicate  tints  of  these 
chiaroscuri,  which  are  cooler  than  those  in 
San  Giovanni,  reveal  the  painter's  harmoni- 
ous chromatic  sense,  for  the  general  tone 
of  colour  is  less  intense  here  than  in  the 
other  cupola.  The  folds  of  the  draperies 
have  lost  something  of  their  severity,  and 
the  attitudes  have  a  touch  of  affectation ; 
but  the  nude  figures  are  modelled  with  great 
beauty  and  dignity  and  are  full  of  vivacity. 
To  the  concave  pendentives  Correggio 
gave  the  form  of  scallop  shells,  surrounding 
their  edges  with  other  shells,  which  form  a 
framework  very  similar  to  that  of  the  lunettes 
in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo. 

In  the  lower  part  of  these  pendentives, 
or  niches,  as  we  may  call  them,  billowy 
masses  of  clouds  rise  like  the  smoke  of 
incense,  white  and  luminous  in  the  upper 
stratum,  but  gradually  shading  down  through 
pale  violet  to  a  dense  gray  at  the  junction  of 

FIGURE    FROM    SOFFITS  OF    T.m  ARCHES  ,  ,  -T- 1  •  T      T1 

ATT^MA^y^coLmci"™"""'"'  ^^  arches.  The  patron  saints  ot  Parma  are 
enthroned  on  the  clouds,  and  around  them 
tlutter  joyous  bands  of  cherubs  and  youthful  angels. 

In  the  pendentive  to  the  right  of  the  spectator  as  he  faces  the 
apse,  the  Bishop  Hilary  is  seated  ;  he  wears  a  white  surplice  and 
yellow  chasuble  ;  with  outstretched  arms  he  gazes  below  and  points 
to  the  high  altar.  One  of  the  seven  attendant  genii  fl)ing  down- 
wards, turns  his  head  to  look  at  the  saint,  pulling  at  his  com- 
panion's hand.  Others  l:)ear  the  bishop's  pastoral  staff,  his  mitre,  and 
his  book. 

Six  angels,  partly  concealed  among  the  clouds,  appear  in  the  other 
niche.  One,  who  is  seated  astride  on  a  vaporous  globe,  looks  down 
into  the  church  ;  a  second  prays  with  hands  devoutly  joined,  and  two 


'■^'% 


vivatit 
Mem  I 


Ami's 
snwie  li 

bthrai§i 


^^  A.. 


*.€1t 


*^*.m 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


pears,  pomegranates,  medlars,  pines,  and  roots,  painted  with  infinite 
variety  of  form  and  colour.  In  the  compartments  of  the  octagon 
between  the  pendentives,  and  round  the 
small  windows  of  the  drum,  chiarosciiri 
of  different  tones  are  painted.  The  orna- 
ment of  the  four  windows,  which  consists  of 
a  sphinx  looking  upwards,  and  foliage,  is 
a  little  cold,  while  that  of  the  side  spaces 
is  warm  and  mellow.  The  design  of  the 
latter  is  a  band  o{ putti  riding  on  dolphins, 
who  either  carry  twisted  cornucopias,  or, 
like  the  infant  Hercules,  strangle  a  ser- 
pent.^ Although  the  composition  consists 
of  only  two  designs,  repeated  alternately, 
the  free  and  decisive  use  of  the  brush,  the 
variety  of  the  faces,  and  certain  trifling 
differences  in  the  curve  of  an  arm,  a  leg, 
or  a  head,  give  an  individual  sentiment 
to  each  of  these ///•///.  The  monochrome 
in  which  they  are  painted  has  not  given 
p.«ma,"bv'^corTegg't'o.  '^•""''°'""-  "^  them  a  sculpturesque  character.  They 
are,  indeed,  as  animated  and  life-like 
as    those    which    are    coloured. 

Above  the  narrow  cornice  of  gilded  stone,  Correggio  has  painted 
another  and  much  deeper  one,  of  simulated  marble,  in  such  bold  and 
cunning  relief  as  to  deceive  the  most  practised  eye.  It  is,  in  fact,  only 
by  ascending  into  the  cupola  and  examining  it  closely  that  one  dis- 
covers it  to  be  a  simulacrum.  A  device  of  which  the  painter  made 
use  adds  greatly  to  the  illusory  effect.  This  was  the  carrying  of  the 
upper  line  of  his  cornice  slightly  over  the  circular  frames  of  the  small 
windows,  in  such  a  manner  that  looking  up  at  them  from  below  they 
seem  to  lie  behind  it.  The  figures  have  gained  more  by  this  device 
than  any  other  part  of  the  composition.      By  concealing  the  feet  and 

'  The  head  of  one  of  these  genii  in  the  soiitli  compartment  has  been  repainted  in  the 
most  barbarous  manner. 


hr. 


€ 


iitelES 


i 


Pendentive  of  the  Cupola  in  ihe  Cathedral  at  Pan 


W 


Pendentive  of  llie  Cujiola  in  the  Cjthedral  at  Parma. 


m^:  u 


264  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

Abraham  symbolises  the  obedience  due  from  man  to  God,  even  to 
the  death.  Judith  bears  witness  that  even  a  deed  of  violence  may 
be  sanctified  by  faith.  David,  holding  Goliath's  hideous  head  by 
the  hair,  reminds  us  that  no  human  power  can  resist  the  arm  of 
the   Lord. 

The  crowd  of  figures  becomes  denser  and  denser  as  they  descend 
into  the  golden  vapour.  There  are  old  men  with  white  hair,  warriors 
in  armour,  veiled  maidens,  and  naked  boys.  Some  clasp  their  hands 
in  prayer,  others  raise  them  to  heaven,  some  point  with  outstretched 
finger,  some  converse  with  their  neighbours,  some  gaze  in  ecstasy  at 
the  divine  Mother,  others  bend  forward  to  greet  her  as  she  ascends. 

From  the  midst  of  the  circle  a  messenger  of  God  flings  himself 
forward  to  meet  her,  gazing  down  at  her  and  raising  his  arms  in 
affectionate  adoration.^ 

He  who  gazes  long  at  the  spectacle  feels  himself  gradually  carried 
away  by  the  marvel  of  the  vision.  He  can  almost  fancy  that  he  hears 
the  echo  of  joyous  cries  beneath  the  vault,  and  that,  were  the  summit 
of  the  dome  to  open,  the  whole  legion  of  saints  and  angels  would 
flutter  through  like  a  flight  of  doves  and  soar  heavenwards. 

In  execution,  this  colossal  fresco  is  even  more  refined  and  delicate 
than  that  of  the  cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista.  There  is  no 
trace  of  the  brush  strokes  in  any  of  the  figures,  and  even  those  which 
have  been  laid  on  the  shadows  to  strengthen  them  are  barely 
apparent. 

The  carnations  have  lost  much  of  their  reddish  tint  in  the  fuller 
development,  or  more  equal  diffusion,  of  the  alabastrine  tones,  which 
in  some  lights  appear  almost  white.  The  shadows  are  obtained  with- 
out any  excess  of  gradations,  and  are  therefore  exquisitely  transparent, 
with  a  play  of  reflections,  through  which  the  modelling  is  as  perceptible 
as  in  the  illuminated  portions.  The  air  seems  to  circulate  freely 
between  the  figures.  In  the  rendering  of  such  effects  Correggio  had 
no   superiors,  and  his  supremacy  is  fully   attested  by  these    frescoes 

1  Some  writers  have  described  this  angel  as  ascending,  instead  of  descending,  not 
observing  that,  as  his  draperies  cHng  round  his  body,  or  flutter  over  his  head  in  an 
upward  direction,  he  must  be  rushing  downward  through  the  air. 


arm  of 


'All 


.V^^^?L*^L 


Pcndentive  of  the  Cupola  in  the  C.ithedn 


A    HASH    OF    FROGS' 


267 


In  this  contemptuous  phrase  our  painter  only  received  the  usual 
measure  meted  out  to  those  whose  genius  is  in  advance  of  their  times. 
The  crowd  is  never  willing  to  confess  itself  unable  to  understand  an 
exceptional  work.  The  mediocre  cavil  at  those  who  cannot  descend 
to  their  level,  though  they  are  ready  enough  to  exalt  them  after  they 
are  dead,  when  the  artist's  conception,  surviving  his  body,  triumphs  at 
last  over  ignorance  and  misapprehension.  Correggio,  conscious  of  the 
greatness  of  his  work,  must 
have  been  keenly  wounded, 
less  by  the  criticism  itself  than 
by  the  ludicrous  form  in  which 
it  was  exjDressed.  The  name 
of  the  canon  who  hailed  the 
completion  of  an  immortal 
work  with  this  phrase  has  not 
come  down  to  us,  fortunately 
for  him;  it  would  have  acquired 
a  fame  by  no  means  enviable. 
But  if  it  be  true  that  every 
poetical  work  lends  itself  to 
parody,  and  that  the  most 
beautiful  face  may  aftbrd  a 
subject  for  good-natured  cari- 
cature, may  we  not  accept  this 
"hash  of  frogs"  as  a  quip 
not  altogether  infelicitous,  from 
one  who,  bewildered  by  a  com- 
plicated interlacement  of  limbs,  recalled  what  was  no  doubt  a  favourite 
dish  of  his  own  .'* 

We  do  not  know  if  the  other  canons  were  of  the  same  mind.  Ikit 
it  is  certain  that  the  ignorant  jest  of  one  gave  rise  to  a  traditional 
prejudice  against  the  whole  body  ;  hence  the  absurd  story  that  "  before 
Correggio  had  finished  his  work,  they  formed  the  design  of  effacing  it 
altogether."  ^  From  this  intention  they  were  supposed  to  have  been 
'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  265.      Pungileoni,  i.  pp.  211,  21:;. 


,♦    ir"^  - 

r-^i^ 

^ 

I'^r- 

'^m:. 

®©, 

EVE,    bV    COREECCIO. 
;   Fresco  in  the  Calhedr.M  .il  P.irm.i 
In  the  British  Museum. 


ANTONIO   DA   CORREGGIO 


dissuaded  by  Titian,  on  his  arrival  at  Parma  with  Charles  V.  "  After 
contemplating  the  dome  for  some  time  in  silence,  he  exclaimed  :  '  Turn 
it  upside  down,  and  fill   it  with  gold  ;  even  so,  you  will   not  have  paid 

its  just  price.'  "  The 
legends  that  grew  up 
in  connection  with  the 
work  are  innumerable. 
One  fable  (of  which 
we  shall  speak  again) 
declared  that  Correg- 
gio  made  use  of  little 
figures  modelled  in 
clay  by  Begarelli  for 
the  foreshortening  of 
his  numerous  figures  ; 
another,  that  Christina 
of  Sweden  declined 
to    believe     that     the 


THE    ASSUMPTION,   BY    CORREGGIO. 

Study  for  the  Cupola  of  Parma  Cathedral. 
In  the  Dresden  Museum. 


upper  cornice  was  only 
painted,  and  insisted  on  having  a  scaffold  erected  that  she  might 
convince  herself  by  touching  the  surface  with  her  hand.^ 

The  anxiety  of  the  wardens  of  the  cathedral  to  protect  and 
strengthen  the  cupola  sufficiently  proves  that  if  the  beauty  of  the 
frescoes  was  not  fully  appreciated  at  first,  they  at  least  received  a  fair 
share  of  admiration.  In  1533  the  authorities  began  to  cover  the  exte- 
rior of  the  dome  with  sheets  of  copper  and  lead,  and  the  work  of  repair 
went  on  till  1539." 

We  may  now  pass  in  review  .some  of  the  studies  and  cartoons  made 
by  Correggio  for  his  work.  Vasari,  in  the  sixteenth  century,  asserted 
that  he  had  in  his  possession  certain  figures  "drawn  in  red  pencil  by 
his  hand,  with  portions  of  a  frieze  of  most  beautiful  children,  and 
other  friezes  designed  for  the  work,  with  various  conceits  of  antique 
sacrifices."  " 

1   Su>>ia  iklla  pittiira  di  Fraiiccuv  Pasi/ii,  MS.  quoted  by  Pungilconi,  ii.  p.  22S. 

-  Arcliives  of  the  warduns  of  the  cathedral,  case  i.  nos.  22,  41.  ^  Vi/v,  iv.  |i.  113. 


STUDIES    FOR    THE    FRESCOES  269 

The  confusion  first  made  by  this  writer  Ijctwccn  the  frescoes  in  San 
Giovanni  Evangelista  and  those  in  the  cathedral  seems  to  have  extended 
to  the  drawings.  The  "antique  sacrifices"  to  which  Yasari  alludes  appear 
in  the  frieze  of  the  nave  in  San  Giovanni  Evangelista.  Three  sketches 
of  a  frieze  of  children  ascribed  to  Correggio  are  preserved  in  the 
Louvre,  but  the  design  was  not  made  use  of  in  any  of  the  works  that 
have  survived.'  Pungileoni,-  Meyer,'  Venturi/  etc.,  mention  many 
other  drawings,  the  greater  number  of  which  are  no  longer  to  be  traced. 

In   the   Louvre   there   is  a  drawing   of   the   pendentive    with    the 
figure   of  St.  John   the    Baptist  ;  at  Vienna,  a  study  for    one  of   the 
Apostles  (sfc  illustration  on   p.    227)  ;''  at    Dresden,  a  first  sketch   of 
the  ascending  Virgin  with  two  angels;  in  the  Royal  Library  at  Windsor, 
a  magnificent  and  carefully  finished  drawing  of   the  group  of  Adam, 
Abraham,  and    Isaac  ;    in    the   British    Museum,    a    drawing  of    Eve. 
In    the    Duke  of    Devonshire's    collection    at    Chatsworth    there    are 
various  drawings  of  piitti,  but  it  is  impossible  to  identify  them   with 
those     of     the     fresco, 
many   of    them    having 
undergone         modifica- 
tions {sec  illustrations  on 
pp.  2  2 8,  229,  and  230)." 

1  In  the  Uffizi  in  Florence- 
there  is  a  pen  drawing  of  a 
frieze  of  children,  ascribed  to  ^~:-'', 

Correggio  (No.  1947  P.).     It 

is    probably  by  Lorenzo  Sab-  ~~''X  '"'"■-^ 

batini. 

-   Op.  cit.  ii.  p.  201  et  seq.  A^'     /  y'.    ,v_  ..  Vi 

•*  Correggio,  \).  ^id  et  seg.         if""  (     /.        '^';.", 

^  La   R.  Galkria   est e use.  ^.      (  \  ~^ 

P-377- 

■>  Franz      Wickhoff,     Die  — — 

itaiietiischen  Haiidzeiclmungen  ,\daim,  abkaham,  and  isaac,  by  correggio. 

der     Albertina,    Part    i.        Die  Sludy  for  the  Cupola  of  Parma  Cathedral. 

venezianische,  die  lombardische,  '"  "^^  '^°>'"'  l"'"''^''  ^"-^^"^  '=^'"'=- 

iind  die    bolognesische   Schule. 

{jahrbuch  der  kunsthistorisclien  Sammlungen  des  allerli.     Kaiser/iaiises,  vol.  xii.      1891.) 

'^  The  drawing  in  red  chalk  of  the  ascending  Virgin  with  angels  in  the  Chatsworth 

collection  is  a  late  and  ugly  copy.      There  are  several  other  drawings  at  Chatsworth 

attributed  to  Correggio,  but  certainly  not  by  his  hand.      Tite  Martyrdom  of  a  Saint,  for 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


With  regard  to  the  large  cartoons,  fifteen  of  which  are  said  to  have 
been  recently  discovered  in  Paris,  and  to  have  been  bought  in  1754  by 
a  lady  called  Basseporte  for  8,000  lire}  we  are  inclined  to  be  sceptical. 
During  the  restoration  and  cleaning  of  the  cupola  a  great  many  artists, 
from  the  Carracci  onwards,  made  drawings  of  entire  zones  of  the  fresco 
on  the  original  scale  ;  while  others,  such  as  Girolamo  da  Carpi,  Barocci, 
Sabbatini,    Passerotti,    etc.,    copied   certain    portions   in    oil,    or    made 

studies  of  single  figures  or 
motives,  at'ter  the  manner  of 
the  six  sketches  which  passed 
from  the  Marchese  Aldro- 
vandi  to  a  certain  Carlo 
Zanichelli,-  and  the  colossal 
head  of  a  boy  in  the  Uffizi  at 
Florence. 

These  numerous  copies 
in  various  mediums  show 
how  rapidly  the  fame  of  Cor- 
reggio's  great  work  had  es- 
tablished itself  Vasari  was 
the  first  to  write  of  it.  "  It 
seems  incredible,  not  only 
that  the  hand  should  have 
""°'^'°""-  ^1    I         '   "'™— --  executed,  but  that  the  brain 

should  have  conceived  such 
a  work,  so  wonderful  is  the  airy  motion  of  the  draperies  and  of  the 
atmosphere."  He  adds  that  Girolamo  da  Carpi  expressed  his  ad- 
instance,  has  many  of  the  characteristics  of  Giorgio  Gandino  del  Grano.  The  figure  of 
the  Apostle  in  profile,  looking  up,  is  a  study  made  by  Bernardino  Gatti  for  the  cupola  of 
the  Steccata.  Several  of  the  drawings  ascribed  to  Correggio  at  Windsor  are  by  Parmi- 
gianino  and  Girolamo  Mazzola.  A  drawing  of  a  semi-nude  female  figure  with  three 
children,  in  the  Louvre,  ascribed  to  Correggio,  is  a  study  by  Parmigianino  for  his  Saint 
Agatha.  We  need  not  mention  the  hundreds  of  other  drawings  to  which  his  name  has 
been  affixed  with  bewildering  levity. 

1  Archiv.  storko  del/'  arte,  iii.  y.  413.     Rome,  1S90. 

2  G.  Giordani,  Sopm  sei  dipinti  ad  olio  del  Corn\i;gio.  Letter  to  Cav.  Pictro  Martini. 
Bologna,  1865.  M.S.  letter  of  Signor  Carlo  Zanichelli  in  the  archives  of  the  Parma 
Gallery. 


THE    FAME    OF   TTTE   WORK 


miration  of  "the  marvellous  foreshortening  of  the  figure  of  the  Virgin, 
who  ascends  to  heaven,  surrounded  by  a  multitude  of  angels." 

The  Carracci  were  even  more  fervent  in  their  admiration.  On 
April  i8,  15S0,  Annibale  wrote  to  Agostino  :  "  I  lost  no  time  in  going 
to  see  the  great  cupola,  which  you  have  so  often  praised  to  me,  and  I, 
too,  was  amazed  to  see  .so  vast  a  composition  so  perfectly  carried 
out,  so  e.xcellently 
foreshortened  from 
beneath  to  above, 
executed  with  so 
much  vigour,  and 
yet  with  such  grace 
and  judgment,  and 
with  a  glow  of 
colour  that  seems  to 
be  that  of  flesh  it- 
self. Trul)-,  neither 
Tibaldo,  nor  Nico- 
lino,^  nor  even 
Raphael  himself, 
has  equalled  it  !  " 

From  thence- 
forth Parma  be- 
came a  place  of 
jiilgrimage  for  all 
the  numerous  ar- 
tists of  the  Bolog- 

■  .IKAl.    OF     A     r.nv,    A     LOl'V    AFTER    COKRECGIO. 

nese  school,  and  the  1^^  ^1^^  ^^^.^^.  p,^^^,^^,. 

cupola  of  the  Duo- 
mo  the  greatest  and  most  perfect  example  of  Italian  art,  and  the  ideal 
that  every  painter  of  discrimination  sought  to  follow.    Scannelli  declared 
that  it  was  "a  complete  epitome  of  all  the  excellencies  scattered  abroad 
in  the  works  of  other  masters.""-     Nor  did  the  enthusiasm  abate  in  the 

1  Pellegrino  Tibaldi  and  Nicolo  dell'  Abate. 
-  n  Microcosmo  dclla  pittura,  p.  iS. 


272  ANTONIO    DA    CORRECxGIO 

following  centuries.  Gianbattista  Tiepolo,  contemplating  it,  almost 
felt  his  faith  in  Titian  and  Paolo  Veronese  shaken  ;  and  Mengs  summed 
up  the  chorus  of  praise  in  these  words  :  "  It  is  the  most  beautiful  of  all 
the  cupolas  painted  either  before  or  since."  ^ 

Ludwig  Tieck,  the  famous  German  poet,  sang  thus  of  Correggio  : 
"What  genius  disclosed  all  these  wonders  to  thee  ?  All  the  fair  images 
in  the  world  seem  to  have  sprung  forward  to  meet  thee,  and  to  throw 
themselves  lovingly  into  thine  arms.  How  joyous  was  the  gathering 
when  smiling  angels  held  thy  palette,  and  sublime  spirits  stood  before 
thee  in  all  their  splendour  as  models.  Let  no  one  say  he  has  seen 
Italy,  let  no  one  think  he  has  learnt  the  lofty  secrets  of  art,  till  he  has 
seen  thee  and  thy  cathedral,  O  Parma!" 

1    (7/,vv,  ii.  p.  .5S. 


CHAPTER    XII 

CORREGGIO'S   GREAT   ALTAR-PIECES 

"the    madonna  with    ST.   SEBASTIAN'' "THE  MADONNA  WITH  ST.  JEROME" "THE 

M.\DONXA     DELLA     SCODELLA '' "THE     NATIVITY,     KNOWN    AS    'LA    NOTTE '" "THE 


WITH    ST.    GEORGE 


B 


ETWEEN  1524  and  1530, 
the  years  in  which  he 
was  workinq-  in  the  cathe- 
dral, Correg-gio  also  produced 
some  of  the  great  akar-pieces 
now  in  the  Dresden  and  Parma 
Galleries.  It  was,  indeed,  a  period 
no  less  prolific  than  glorious  in 
his  a-nzTC,  when  he  seems  to  have 
had  but  few  distractions  from 
his  work.  Personal  details  are 
consequently  somewhat  scanty 
throughout      these      years.        In 

.■UTTI.     (Fresco  in  the  Camem  d,  >.'.„  I'aolo  at  Parma.) 

February,  1525,  he  was   in  Cor- 
reggio,  where  he  appeared  as  witness  to  several  legal  documents,  and 

N    N 


274  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

where  he  also  addressed  an  appeal  to  the  Podesta,  soliciting  the 
examination  of  certain  witnesses  in  his  law-suit  against  the 
Aromani.^  In  August  of  the  same  year  he  figures  as  one  of  the 
artists  who  made  an  examination  of  the  church  of  Santa  Maria  della 
Steccata,  a  subsidence  of  the  building  having  taken  place,  which  had 
caused  some  alarm  for  its  safety.-  In  1527,  the  year  when  his  uncle, 
Lorenzo  Allegri,  died,  he  returned  to  his  native  city,  and  at  the 
instance  of  Manfredo,  Lord  of  Correggio,  finally  brought  his  litiga- 
tion against  the  Aromani  to  an  end  ;  he  also  empowered  his  father, 
Pellegrino,  to  act  for  him  in  another  law-suit  relating  to  the  property 
of  his  wife,  Girolama  Merlini.  In  the  summer  of  1528  he  was 
again  in  Correggio,  as  we  know  from  Veronica  Gambara's  letter 
of  that  date  to  Isabella  Gonzaga,  describing  the  Magdalen  in  the 
Desert  he  had  just  painted.  His  wife's  death  took  place  shortly  after- 
wards, and  this  sad  event  necessitated  his  return  to  his  home,  where  he 
spent  nearly  the  whole  of  the  four  remaining  years  of  his  life. 

We  have  seen  that  he  happened  to  be  absent  from  Parma  during 
the  siege.  He  was  less  fortunate  six  years  later,  when  the  hordes 
which  the  Connetable  de  Bourbon  had  at  first  led  became  in  their  turn 
his  leaders,  sweeping  him  on  with  them  to  the  sack  of  Rome.  In 
February,  1527,  they  skirted  the  walls  of  Parma  in  their  march,  to  the 
infinite  terror  of  the  citizens,  who  expected  nothing  short  of  siege  and 
pillage.^  Never  did  swarm  of  barbarians  descend  into  Italy  dealing 
havoc  and  destruction  with  such  fury  as  these.  The  Lanzknechte 
took  men  and  children  prisoners  for  the  sake  of  ransom,  offered  violence 
to  women,  desecrated  convents,  invaded  houses,  and,  after  robbing 
them  of  all  they  could  lay  hands  on,  set  fire  to  them.     They  burst  into 

'  Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  193. 

-  A.  Ronchini,  La  Steccata  di  Parma  {Atti  e  mcmoric  delta  R.  Deputazionc  di  storia 
patn'a  per  Modena  e  Parma,  vol.  i.  p.  182.  Modena,  1863).  Among  these  artists  were 
Alessandro  and  Battistone  Chierici,  Marc'  Antonio  Zucchi,  G.  F.  Agrate,  and  Bernardino 
da  Erba,  the  architects,  Jacopo  Filippo  Gonzate,  caster  of  statues,  G.  F.  Bonzagni,  the 
medalHst,  Araldi  and  Anselmi,  the  painters.     Correggio's  name  heads  the  Hst. 

^  Angeli,  Storia  di  Parma,  p.  514  et  seq.  Ant.  Francesco  da  Villa,  Cronaca  di 
Piacenza,  p.  106  et  seq.  Parma,  1862.  Pietro  Balan,  Monumetita  skcjiH  xvi.  liistoriam 
illustratitia,  \o\.  \.  Innsbriick,  1885.  Unpublished  letters  of  Vianesio  Albergati  to  the 
Senate  of  Bologna.     State  archives  of  Bologna,  1 526-1 527,  etc.,  etc. 


"  THE    MADONNA   WITU   ST.    SEBASTIAN  "  275 

the  churches,  tore  down  the  pictures,  shattered  the  statues,  broke  up 
the  consecrated  wafers,  and  poured  out  the  holy  oil  upon  the  ground. 
Their  leader  was  threatened  with  violence  himself  when  he  attempted 
to  curb  their  worst  excesses.  Peasants  were  hunted  and  murdered  ; 
merchants  were  despoiled  of  all  they  possessed  ;  envoys  who 
attempted  to  treat  with  the  invaders  were  repulsed  with  savage 
shouts  and  menaces.  Some  unpublished  letters  in  the  archives  of 
Bologna  give  a  brief  but  terrible  account  of  that  memorable  pro- 
gress. The  passer-by,  says  one,  "  may  easily  follow  their  route  from 
any  elevated  spot,  for  they  mark  their  track  in  fire,  burning  all  the 
houses  and  buildings  they  pass,  so  that  there  is  darkness  over  all  the 
plain,  through  which  fire  and  smoke  are  visible,  proclaiming  the 
advent  of  the  barbarians,  who  have  come  to  destroy  and  devastate  this 
province  of  Italy  as  they  did  before  in  times  gone  by."  And  in  another 
letter  :  "Nothing  is  to  be  seen  but  clouds  of  smoke  by  day,  and  flames 
of  fire  by  night."  Correggio,  gazing  through  the  narrow  windows  of 
the  cathedral  dome,  must  have  seen  these  sinister  columns  of  smoke 
rising  along  the  wide  valley  of  the  Po,  and  melting  away  towards 
Ferrara  and  Bologna. 

The  pictures  we  are  now  about  to  describe  were  distributed  among 
the  three  Emilian  cities,  Modcna,  Reggio,  and  Parma.  Parma  is  the 
only  one  of  the  three  which  still  retains  her  treasures. 

The  JMadonna  loith  St.  Sebastian,  was  painted  in  1525  for  the 
Confraternity  of  St.  Sebastian  at  Modena.  In  1659  Duke  Alfonso  lY. 
obtained  it  for  his  gallery,  in  exchange  presenting  a  copy  by  Boulanger, 
and  causing  the  vault  of  the  choir  In  the  chapel  of  the  brotherhood  to 
be  painted  by  the  Bolognese  artists,  Colonna  and  Mitelli.^  It  was 
included  among  the  pictures  sold  by  Francesco  III.  to  Augustus  III., 
King  of  Poland  and  Elector  of  Saxony,  and  passed  into  the  Dresden 
Gallery  in    1746. 

1  he  Virgin,  In  a  crimson  robe  and  blue  mantle,  Is  enthroned  on 
clouds  in  an  aureole  of  light,  surrounded  by  a   semicircle   of  seraph- 

'  Vasari,  vi.  p.  471.  Tiraboschi,  p.  276.  rungileoni,  i.  p.  159,  and  ii.  p.  193.  Venturi, 
Galleria  esknse,  p.  309,  etc.  For  the  four  pictures  by  Correggio  in  the  Dresden  Gallery, 
see  Hermann  Liicke,  Die  konigliche  Gemiildegakrie  zu  Dresden.     Munich,  1S94. 


276  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

heads;  she  gently  supports  the  Infant,  who  is  seated  across  her  left 
knee.  Youthful  angels  are  grouped  on  each  side  of  her.  One  of  those 
nearest  to  her  bends  forward  to  gaze  at  the  sleeping  St.  Roch,  another 
to  call  St.  Sebastian's  attention  to  the  Child.  Others  at  her  feet  support 
the  clouds,  caryatid-wise,  or  mount  sportively  upon  them.  The  line 
formed  by  the  three  saints  descends  in  a  peculiar  manner  from  left  to 
right.  St.  Sebastian,  "  whose  expression  and  attitude  are  of  most 
strange  beauty,"  ^  stands  to  the  left.  His  hands  are  bound  to  the  trunk 
of  a  tree,  but  he  turns  to  gaze  with  a  happy  smile  at  the  Infant  Jesus, 
who  extends  his  little  hand  in  benediction.  St.  Geminianus,  in 
a  white  surplice,  a  gold  cope,  and  crimson  hose,  kneels,  facing 
the  spectator,  to  whom  he  points  out  the  Virgin  and  Child  above. 
St.  Roch,  in  a  blue  tunic  and  orange  mantle,  sleeps  peacefully  on  a 
rising  knoll,  relieved  from  his  sufferings.  A  glimpse  of  landscape 
is  seen  behind  him.  The  light  falls  on  his  legs  only  ;  the  rest  of  his 
body  is  in  the  shadow  of  the  clouds.  The  light  is  therefore  diffused 
more  especially  on  the  figures  of  St.  Sebastian  and  of  the  patron  saint 
of  Modena,  and  dies  away  upon  the  third  saint  in  a  manner  very  restful 
to  the  eye.  Seated  on  the  ground  to  the  left,  a  beautiful  and  smiling 
girl  observes  St.  Geminianus,  anxious  to  invoke  his  protection  for 
the  city  of  Modena,  which  is  indicated  by  the  model  of  a  group  of 
buildings,  among  them  the  cathedral,  with  its  tower  and  doorway.- 

The  picture  has  lost  much  of  its  original  brilliance.  Unlike  most 
of  the  master's  works,  the  history  of  its  migrations  is  very  simple, 
though  the  talc  of  its  misadventures  is  a  long  and  painful  one.  Gian 
Battista  Spaccini  relates  that  so  early  as  1611  Ercole  Abba  obtained 
leave  to  repair  the  damage  done  to  the  picture  by  Ercole  dell'  Abate, 
who  exposed  it  to  the  sun,  "  to  make  the  colours  blend."  The  double 
injury  inflicted  by  these  two  artists  was  slight,  however,  when  compared 
with  the  havoc  wrought  shortly  afterwards  by  the  Bolognese,  Flaminio 
Torri,  who  repainted  it  almost  entirely.  Mengs  also  speaks  of  certain 
scratches  made  in  the  process  of  its  transport,  and  repaired  at  Dresden.^ 

'  Scannelli,  Microcosmo  della pitlina,  j).  jiSij, 

2  There  is  a  copy  of  this  child's  head,  i)crliaiis  by  Fcderigo  I'.arocci,  in  the  Pitti 
Oallery  at  Florence.  ^  Opcrc,  ii.  p.  166. 


"THE    MADONNA    Wri'II    ST.    JEROME"  277 

The  state  to  which  it  had  been  reduced  may  be  imagined  from  tlie  fact 
that  when  Pahnaroli  was  commissioned  to  remove  the  over-paints,  he 
brought  to  Hght  several  cherub  heads  which  had  been  completely 
hidden.  Such  a  succession  of  outrages  resulted,  as  may  be  supposed, 
in  the  destruction  of  the  original  harmonies  ;  the  shadows  have  been 
robbed  of  their   richness  and  delicacy,  and  the  figures  have  become 


harsh  and   rough   in  parts,   especially  the   St.   Sebastian  and    the    St. 
Geminianus.' 

The  so-called  S/.  Jefonie  JMadonna,  now  one  of  the  chief  orna- 
ments of  the  Parma  Gallery,  is  in  a  very  difterent  state.-  There 
are  no  original  documents  now  e.xtant  which  show   in   what  year  it  was 

1  The  legs  and  hands  of  the  St.  Sebastian  are  entirely  ruined ;  the  hands  of  the  St. 
tleniinianus  have  been  partly  repainted  ;  St.  Roch's  face  has  been  retouched,  etc.  In 
fact,  this  is  one  of  the  most  severely  handled  of  all  Correggio's  works. 

-  Some  writers  have  attempted  to  christen  this  picture  //  Gionw  (Day),  in  contrast  to 
La  Nolle  (Night),  in  the  Dresden  Gallery. 


"THE    MADONNA    WITPT    ST.    JERO^IE"  279 

interested  waited  patiently  till  it  should  be  forgotten  to  return  to  the 
charge.      Meanwhile  the  prince  died. 

Several  years  passed,  when  suddenly  a  rumour  gained  ground  that 
negotiations  for  the  sale  of  the  picture  had  been  opened  afresh 
between  the  Conte  Anguissola,  Preceptor  of  Sant'  Antonio,  and  a 
foreign  potentate.  Some  said  the  King  of  Portugal  had  offered  to 
buy  it  for  40,000  ducats  ;  others,  that  the  proposed  purchaser  was  the 
King  of  Poland,  and  the  price  agreed  upon  14,000  sequins.  The 
second  version  was  no  doubt  the  true  one.  We  know,  in  fact, 
that  Augustus  III.,  King  of  Poland  and  Elector  of  Saxony,  had 
bought  about  a  hundred  famous  pictures  from  the  Duke  of  Modena 
three  years  before,  among  which  were  several  by  Correggio,  and  that 
he  continued  to  collect  others  for  his  gallery  at  Dresden.  In  the  un- 
published chronicle  of  a  contemporary  writer  we  read  under  the  date 
of  December  5,  1749  :  "  The  picture  in  Sant'  Antonio  by  the  famous 
Correggio  has  been  removed  from  its  place,  and  deposited  in  the 
cathedral,  that  is  to  say  in  the  Chapter-house  ;  an  event  which  has 
caused  great  stupefaction,  the  picture  having  been  for  so  many  years 
in  the  hands  of  the  Preceptors  of  the  said  church  of  Sant'  Antonio. 
The  present  Preceptor  is  Count  Anguissola,  a  native  of  Piacenza. 
Report  says  that  the  matter  is  approved  by  supreme  authority,  and  that 
a  contract  has  been  made  with  the  King  of  Poland,  who  has  offered 
14,000  sequins,  and  1,000  as  a  present  to  the  Conte  Anguissola,  the 
abbot  aforesaid.  We  shall  see  what  befalls  in  time.  At  present  all  is 
kept  secret."  ^ 

By  peremptory  order,  the  picture  was  removed  at  the  expense  of 
the  community  from  the  sacristy  of  Sant'  Antonio,  placed  in  a  room 
of  the  Chapter-house  with  official  solemnity,'-  and,  for  greater  safety, 
at  once  walled  into  a  kind  of  niche.  The  notaries  had  meanwhile 
drawn  up  the  deeds  relating  to   it. 

About  six  years  later,  in  the  August  of  1756,  a  French  painter, 
who  had   obtained  leave   to  copy  it,  proposed  to  put  a  glaze  upon  it, 

1  Sgavetti,  Cromca,  MSS.  in  the  state  archives  at  Parma,  ii.  p.  65. 
"  Communal  archives  of  Parma.     Rngioneria,  Ord'niazioni diverse,  1749-50.     No.  403. 
Book  of  ordinary  and  extraordinary  expenditure,  etc.,  1728-51. 


28o  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

in  order  to  make  a  drawing  from  it  more  easily.  The  canons  refused 
to  allow  it ;  the  painter  insisted  ;  from  argument  they  came  to  abuse, 
and  the  painter  was  turned  out  of  doors  without  ceremony.  He 
appealed  to  Guillaume  Dutillot,  prime  minister  of  Don  Philip  de 
Bourbon,  Duke  of  Parma,  who,  when  the  matter  had  been  explained 
to  him,  promptly  ordered  the  picture  to  be  removed  to  Colorno.^  The 
priests  dislodged  it  from  the  walls  with  much  difficulty  ;  it  was  put  in 
a  new  frame,  secured  with  four  locks,  fastened  to  bars  with  the  help 
of  twenty-four  grenadiers,  and,  escorted  by  two  deputies  of  the 
commune,  it   left   Parma  for  the  prince's   villa. 

It  had  not  long  been  there,  when  Don  Philip  determined  to  place 
it  in  the  gallery  of  the  Accademia.  There  it  remained  till  1764,  when 
the  church  of  Sant'  Antonio  was  finished,  or  very  nearly  so,  and  the 
Preceptory  petitioned  for  its  "  restitution  to  its  original  destination." 
A  letter  from  Cardinal  Pietro  Francesco  Bussi  to  Clement  XIII.  says 
that  the  Duke  declares  himself  ready  to  hand  over  the  picture,  but  at 
the  same  time  expresses  "a  desire  to  purchase  it.  He  proposes  to 
give  a  sum  of  1,500  zccchini  to  the  Preceptory  in  compensation, 
together  with  a  further  sum  for  the  purchase  of  a  picture  in  place  ot 
the  original."  The  Pontiff,  in  a  mandate  of  November  28,  sanctioned 
the  sale  of  the  picture,  which  was  paid  for  on  April  16,  1765,  with 
a  draft  signed  by  Dutillot." 

Although  occasional  offers  continued  to  be  made  from  foreign 
countries  for  its  purchase,^  the  famous  picture  seemed  at  last  secure  in 
the  new  gallery,  where  it  was  constantly  under  the  public  eye.  In 
1796,  however,  the  French  invaders  carried  it  off  with  many  other 
pictures  from  Parma  to  Paris.  The  unfortunate  Francesco  Rosaspina, 
who  was  just  about  to  begin  a  series  of  engravings  after  Correggio, 
wrote  on  May  19  of  this  year  to  the  Abate  Andrea  Mazza:  "  Unhappily, 
I  knew  myself  to  be  threatened  with  the  fatal  loss  of  our  incomparable 

'  Ratti,  p.  82  d  sei].  Martini,  p.  153  et  seq.  Communal  archives  of  Parma.  Rook 
of  expenditure  from  1751  to  1756. 

2  For  the  details  of  this  sale,  see  A.  G.  Tononi,  Corrispondeitza  tra  il  P.  Paciandi  e 
Mons.  Akss.  Pisani,  vescovo  di  Piacenza  {Aiti  c  memorie  delle  R.  Dcputazioni  di  storia  patria 
per  h provincie  modoiesi  e parinetisi),  series  ii.  vol.  v.  p.  378  et  seq.     Modena,  1888. 

■'  In  1772  Frederick  the  Great  offered  25,000  sequins  for  it.     Ratti,  p.  82. 


"THE    MADONNA    WITH    ST.    JEROMl'."  jSi 

Correggio's  unique  works  ;  but  I  could  not  credit  the  rumour,  remem- 
bering the  close  and  friendly  relations  existing  between  the  Court  of 
Parma  and  that  of  Spain.  It  seems  that  the  princes  have  lost  all 
power  of  guiding  us,  and  that  they  cannot  foresee  things  which  those 
of  low  rank  would  not  fail  to  perceive  and  prepare  against.  And  tM 
have  to  pay  the  penalty  of  their  folly.  I  am  so  overcome  that  I  seem 
to  have  lost  my  wits  and  appetite  together!  What  an  irreparable  loss 
for  Parma!  and  what  ruin  for  me,  whose  whole  life-work  has  been 
overthrown  !  "' 

The  great  political  changes  of  the  limes  pursued  their  ra[)id 
course,  and  all  began  to  bow  down  before  the  meteoric  splendour  of 
Napoleon  I.  Eight  years  had  hardly  passed,  when  all  regrets  for  the 
lost  treasure  appeared  to  be  swallowed  up  in  the  delight  with  which 
a  band  of  sycophants  acclaimed  the  present  of  a  copy  of  the  picture  by 
the  Canon  Gaetano  Tedeschi,  offered  by  Moreau  Saint-Mery.  The 
professors  of  the  Academy  passed  a  vote  of  "  most  hearty  thanks 
for  the  valuable  gift  "  ;  they  hailed  Saint-Mery  as  a  "  beneficent 
Maecenas  "  to  whom  the  liveliest  gratitude  was  due  ;  they  sent  a 
deputation  to  acknowledge  the  offering,  and  Count  Antonio  Bertioli 
addressed  him  in  such  a  strain  that  it  might  have  been  supposed 
Parma  had  quite  as  much  reason  to  rejoice  over  the  copy  as  Paris 
o\er  the  original. - 

Happily,  the  copy  only  usurped  the  place  of  the  original  for  a 
short  time.  The  treaty  of  1815  restored  the  latter  to  Italy.  At  the 
end  of  the  year  it  was  brought  back  to  Milan,  and  early  in  1816 
it  was  restored  to  Parma,  and  placed  once  more  in  the  gallery." 

The  X'irgin,  in  a  red  robe  and  blue  mantle,  is  seated  under  a 
crimson  canopy  fastened  to  the  branches  of  trees,  and  stretched 
across  the  upper  part  of  the  picture  diagonally.  She  supjjorts  the 
Babe  on  her  left  hand,  holding  him  under  the  arm  with  her  right, 
a  tender   smile    of  quiet  happiness  just   dawning   in   her   face.     The 

1  Archives  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  in  the  Royal  I'alatinc  Librar)-  at  I'arnia. 
I'ortlbho  228. 

-  Minutes  of  tile  Accademia  di  Belle  Aiti,  ii.  [>[>.  ^^,  73. 

3  State  archives  of  I'arma,  .////  t/e/  Diantciv  dclk  fuuuizc  panncini,  1815  16.  !■:. 
Scarabelli  Zunti.     Op.  cit. 


"THE    MADONNA   WITH    ST.    JEROME"  2S3 

On  thn  opposite  sido,  tho  Maodalcn,  knoelino-  on  a  piece  of  risino 
ground,  leans  forward  to  tlie  Infant  Jesus,  layiuQ-  Iier  cheek  caressingly 
against  his  leg,  and  holding  his  foot  as  if  ,aI)out  to  kiss  it.  The 
l!abe  lays  his  little  hand  lightly  on  the  f  lir  hair  that  falls  over  lh(> 
shoulders  of  the  penitent,  a  lovely  and  caressing  creature,  about  whom 
some  touch  of  the  coquetry  that  characterises  her  moral  type  is  yet 
apparent  in  the  elegance  of  her  attire,  and  the  graceful  action  with 
which  the  nervous  left  hand  is  bent  back  to  hold  up  the  yellow 
mantle.^ 

While  she  thus  gives  herself  up  to  adoring  worship  of  the  Babe, 
a  delicious  curly-headed  urchin  behind  her,  probably  the  little  St.  John, 
has  taken  her  jar  of  ointment,  to  peep  in  and  smell  it,  or  perhaps  to 
stir  up  the  contents.  Meanwhile,  he  looks  out  of  the  corner  of  his 
eye  on  the  saint  with  a  very  comic  grimace,  lest  she  should  turn 
suddenly  and  reprove  his  curiosity. 

In  the  background  lies  a  broad  valley,  in  which  some  little  figures 
appear,  and  a  group  of  houses,  a  water-course,  an  arch  with  double 
columns,  and,  in  the  distance,  a  high  mountain,  overhung  with  streaks 
of  dark,  vaporous  cloud.  Its  outline  is  that  of  Monte  Dosso,  as 
seen  from  Parma.  Perhaps  the  arch  to  the  left  may  represent  one  of 
the  city  gates,  and  the  water-course  its  river. 

The  picture  we  have  now  described  is  justly  celebrated  as  one  of  the 
finest  productions  not  only  of  Correggio,  but  of  Italian  art.  The  whole 
composition  is  radiant,  palpitating,  living  ;  the  conception  is  marked  by 
the  most  perfect  originality  and  independence.  In  the  foreshortening 
of  the  Magdalen's  face,  and  the  pose  of  her  feet  and  hands,  the  artist 
makes  an  absolutely  new  departure. 

The  technical  result  is  obtained  by  a  series  of  glazes,  and  the 
superposal  of  one  light  tone  upon  another.  The  master  shortened  one 
of  St.  Jerome's  fingers,  and  increased  the  size  of  the  Virgin's  great 
toe,  and  rather  than  impair  the  transparency  of  the  colour,  he  has 
allowed  these  corrections  to  proclaim  themselves  without  disguise. 
An    infinity   of  delicate  reflections    penetrates   the  shadows,   through 

1  There  is  a  drawing  of  the  Magdalen's  head  in  the  Vienna  Museum,  a  poor  and  ugly 
copy. 


284  ANTONIO    DA   rORREOGIO 

which  the  air  appears  to  circulate  freely.  But  for  this  quality  in 
the  execution,  the  luminous  central  group,  in  which  the  heads  and 
hands  of  the  Virgin  and  the  Magdalen  are  brought  into  close  con- 
tact with  the  little  body  of  the  Child,  would  have  become  a  mere 
mass  of  flesh,  without  any  relief  whereas  now  everything  is  dis- 
tinctl)'  brought  out  by  the  diaphanous  tones  that  define  the  various 
objects.  The  Magdalen's  right  hand  and  the  leg  of  the  Child 
seem  almost  to  project  from  the  picture.  The  wonderful  variety 
of  colour  and  motive  throughout  is  so  remarkable  that  it  seems  as  if 
the  painter  had  been  at  special  pains  to  emphasise  it.  The  hair, 
painted  in  the  manner  Vasari  never  tires  of  praising  as  marvellous  in 
its  minute  and  careful  rendering,  varies  both  in  growth  and  colour  on 
every  head.  The  chestnut  locks  of  the  little  St.  John  curl  thickly  ; 
the  Magdalen's  long  fair  hair  flows  in  a  rippling  stream  over  her 
shoulders;  the  Virgin's  brown  tresses  are  parted  under  a  kerchief, 
while  the  Child's  wave  in  soft  tendrils  about  his  forehead  ;  the  angel's 
blonde  curls  are  darker  in  tone  than  the  Magdalen's,  and  St.  Jerome's 
white  locks  cluster  luxuriantly  about  his  noble  head. 

Vasari  speaks  of  this  altar-piece  as  "  coloured  in  such  a  marvellous 
and  stupendous  manner,  that  painters  admire  its  colour  as  miraculous, 
and  it  is  scarcely  possible  to  paint  better."  ^  Francesco  Algarotti 
makes  the  following  admission  :  "  May  Raphael's  divine  genius  pardon 
me,  if,  when  gazing  at  this  picture,  I  break  faith  with  him,  and  am 
tempted  to  say  in  secret  to  Correggio  :  '  Thou  alone  canst  please 
me  ! '  "  2  The  enthusiasm  of  past  generations,  of  which  we  have  given 
some  few  samples,  is  shared  by  many  modern  critics.  Burckhardt,  for 
instance,  speaks  of  this  picture  as  a  marvel  of  colour  and  of  execution, 
a  perfect  expression  of  serene  and  innocent  happiness.  He  praises  the 
exquisite  beauty  of  the  Magdalen,  and  says  that  the  gesture  with 
which  she  prostrates  herself  before  the  Infant  Saviour  is  unsurpassed 
in  its  suggestion  of  feminine  grace." 

Another  picture,  hardly  less  famous  than  this,  was  carried   with   it 

to  Paris  in  1796,  and  restored  to  the  Royal  Gallery  of  Parma  in  1S16. 

This  was  the    Holy    Family,   known   as  the   Madonna  dclla  Scodclla 

'    Viti\  iv.  ]).  114.         "  Bottaii,  Ldlcrc  artistichc,  vii.  p.  419.         •''  /(■  Cica-oiic,  p.  715. 


KD   II  ChynO   (IHF    DAV). 


•'■I'lIE    Nr.\T>0\\.\    DF.I.T.A    SCOl  )[:i,L.\  "  ;S:; 

(The  \'irgin  witli  the  Cup).  On  llic  lower  part  of  its  wonderful 
architectonic  frame  is  the  following  inscription  :  — 

|)I\(1    JOSKPPO    DEIPARAK    VH-iClXIS    CVSTODI 
I'llUSS.    COELITVS(1.    niCSTlNATO    HVIVSCE 

Arm;   comvxi    aere   erectokios    devoti 

Al.ACREStl.    EREXERE    MIiXXX. 

Die  II.  ivxii. 

Strange  to  say,  there  are  no  documents  of  any  sort  relating  to  this 
picture.  The  agreement  and  the  receipt  for  payment  ha\'e  alike 
disappeared.  Pungileoni,  relying  on  a  document  in  the  archives  of 
San  Salvatorc,  described  it  as  painted  aboii/  1527-28.^  The  paper 
further  states  :  "It  is  said  to  have  been  paid  for  by  the  offerings 
of  several  contributors."  The  anonymous  chronicler  thus  advances 
as  a  hypothesis  what  is  stated  as  a  fact  in  the  inscription  reproduced 
above.  He  adds  that  the  tradition  was  borne  out  by  the  will  of 
Cristoforo  Bondini,  who  in  1524  bequeathed  a  sum  of  fifteen  imperial 
/ire  towards  the  purchase,  and  concludes  with  the  statement  that  the 
inscription  on  the  frame  "  is  dated  June  19,  1530,"  whereas,  as  a  fact, 
the  date  is  June  2. 

The  writer  quoted  by  Pungileoni,  is  not  only  late,  but  inaccurate  ; 
yet  nearly  all  Correggio's  biographers  have  adopted  his  dates  ;  some, 
indeed,  have  fi.xed  one  still  earlier.  Meyer  accepts  1527-28;- 
Madame  Mignaty  pronounces  for  1526.''  In  fact  this,  one  of 
Correggio's  most  mature  works,  has  almost  come  to  be  regarded  as  a 
picture  of  his  first  period  !  We  do  not,  on  the  other  hand,  agree  with 
Tiraboschi  ^  and  Baistrocchi,-"'  who  give  1530  as  the  date  of  its 
execution.  It  is  clear  that  the  picture  was  installed  on  June  2  of  that 
year,  and  as  this  installation  was  not  deferred  until  the  feast  of  St. 
Joseph,  or  that  of  the  Virgin,  we  may  conclude  that  it  took  place 
directly  the  picture  was  completed  and  fixed  into  its  frame.  We  are 
therefore  of  opinion  that  Correggio  was  at  work  upon  it  in  1529,  and 
during  the  first  months  of  1530. 

1   Oj>.  cit.  ii.  p.  198.  -  Correggio,  p.  311. 

^  La  vita  e  le  opere  del  Correggio,  p.  311.  '   Op.  cit.  vi.  p.  270. 

"■>    Vite  if  artisti  in  the  Miscellanea  of  the  Palatine  Library,  no.  1106,  already  quoted. 


286  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

It  remained  in  its  original  place  over  the  first  altar  to  the  left  in 
thi>  church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  at  Parma,  escaping-  the  \arious 
attempts  that  were  made  to  sell  it  and  carry  it  off.  In  1754,  a  friar 
of  the  Barefooted  Carmelites  wrote  to  the  sacristan,  saying  that  he 
knew  of  a  purchaser  for  the  picture.  The  sacristan  replied  that 
the  abbot  was  inclined  to  sell  it,  but  that  the  consent  of  the  Infante 
must  first  be  obtained.  Discussing  the  price,  he  refers  to  other  offers 
that  had  been  made  ;  among  them  one  of  30,000  filippi,  from  the 
General  di  Braon,  one  of  600,000  Parmesan  lire  from  the  Senator 
Barbieri,  and  one  of  20,000  zccchini  from  the  priest  Bianconi,  rector 
of  a  church  at  Bologna.^  The  Carmelite's  negotiations  were  pro- 
tracted until  the  close  of  1756;  they  then  seem  to  have  miscarried, 
and  we  hear  no  more  of  him.- 

We  do  not  doubt  that  the  frame,  from  which  the  picture  was 
removed  in  1796,  and  in  which  it  was  replaced  in  1893,  ^'^^  designed 
by  Correggio.  Such  an  artist  would  not  have  entrusted  the  ornament 
that  was  to  enclose  his  exquisite  work  to  the  taste  of  a  carver  and 
gilder.  Other  artists  of  lower  rank  than  Correggio  were  careful  to 
give  their  own  designs  for  the  frames  of  altar-pieces,  and  even  for  the 
altars  they  were  to  adorn.  Girolamo  Mazzola-Bedoli  delighted  in 
work  of  this  kind.  On  the  frame  of  the  Madonna  dclla  Scodclla, 
especially  in  the  frieze,  we  find  the  decorative  motives  Correggio 
affected,  such  as  sea-shells,  cornucopias,  skulls,  and  cherubs'  heads,  all 
of  which  he  introduced  in  the  ornament  of  his  frescoes  in  the  Camera 
di  San  Paolo,  and  in  the  cathedral. 

It  is  not  exactly  known  who  carved  it.  The  style  of  the  execution, 
and  the  date,  suggest  the  name  of  Gian  Francesco  Zucchi,  who 
carved  the  frame  for  the  Conception  at  about  this  time,  in  the  same 
style,  putting  the  same  plaster  preparation  on  the  wood,  and  gilding  it 
in  the  same  manner. 

Many  writers  have  supposed,  and  still  suppose,  that  the  picture 
represents  an  episode  of  the  Flight  into  Egypt,  whereas  it  really 
deals  with  an  incident  of  the  Return  from   Egypt.     The  Babe  is  no 

'   I'.ianconi  also  bought  iiictiires  for  Augustus  III. 
'  Tiraboschi,  vi.  ])p.  270-271. 


M/adonna  delta  Scodcl/a. 


"Tin:    MADOXXA    DllLLA    SCOl  )1:LLA  "  287 

lunger  in  his  first  infancy,  and  St.  Joseph  and  the  mother  are  cahn  and 
cheerful,  as  if  they  had  no  further  cause  for  fear  or  anxiety.  .ScannelH 
was  perhaps  the  first  who  grasped  the  real  significance  of  the  compo- 
sition :  the  picture,  he  says,  "shows  how  the  Blessed  Virgin  returned 
with  the  youthful  Jesus  and  St.  Joseph  to  Nazareth  from  Egypt,  whither 
they  had  fled  from  the  persecution  of  Herod,  and  how,  halting  on  their 
way  in  an  open  plain,  in  which  was  a  palm-tree,  with  dates,  the  good 
St.  Joseph  gathered  some  of  the  fruit  to  satisfy  the  hunger  of  the  Holy 
Child."  1 

The  subject  of  this  work,  which  Vasari  Ccdls  a  "  divine  jjicture  with 
marvellous  figures,"  -  is  taken  from  one  of  the  apocryphal  gospels, 
which  relates  how,  when  the  Holy  Child  and  his  parents  were  ex- 
hausted with  their  journey,  a  palm-tree  bent  down  to  offer  its  fruit, 
while  from  the  parched  ground  at  their  feet  a  limpid  fountain  gushed 
forth. '^ 

From  the  pleasing  and  gracious  elements  of  this  legend  the  painter 
has  evolved  one  of  the  sweetest  of  familiar  episodes,  giving  life  and 
reality  to  the  fanciful  scene. 

Against  the  penumbra  of  a  quiet  copse,  the  three  figures  of  the 
Virgin,  St.  Joseph,  and  the  Infant  Jesus  stand  out,  as  if  illuminated  by 
the  cheerful  rays  of  spring  sunshine.  The  legend  says  that  the  palm 
bowed  itself  spontaneously,  but  the  painter  has  represented  the  branches 
as  bent  by  a  band  of  cherubs,  who  fiutter  down  on  vaporous  clouds,  and 
busy  themselves  in  the  upper  part  of  the  picture,  or  press  upon  the 
boughs  and  pull  them  down.  Their  fair  curls  are  stirred  by  the 
air  and  movement,  their  carnations  are  exquisitely  soft  and  blooming, 
the  parts  in  shadow  relieved  by  the  most  delicate  reflections.  Of  one 
among  them,  only  part  of  the  face  is  visible,  I)ut  the  sparkling 
eyes  give  it  extraordinary  vivacity.  It  may  be  that  the  cleaning  the 
picture  has  undergone  has  robbed  it  of  some  of  its  more  delicate  tints, 
for  the  legs  of  the  two  angels  whose  backs  are  turned  to  the 
spectator    are   somewhat   confused    in    line.       Only     after     prolonged 

1    11  MUnxosmo,  p.  275.  -    /'//<•,  vi.  p.  472. 

^  De  Infantia  Salratoris  Codex  apiKryp/ius  Novi  Testatnenti  collectns  a  I.  A.  Fabricio, 
Hamburgi,  i.  p.  183.  Meyer,  p.  203  et  seq.  G.  Frizzoni,  La  Madonna  della  Sohhlla  del 
Ciirregi^ii),  in  the  Archivio  slorico  dell'  arte,  year  vii.  p.  292  et  seq.     Rome,  1S94. 


2SS  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

scrutiny  do  we  discover  that  the  right  leg  of  the  blue-winged 
angel  passes  under  the  left  leg  of  his  companion,  who  has  thrown 
himself  backwards.  The  clouds,  too,  have  been  stripped  ol  the 
transparent  glazing  wdiich  gave  them  their  pearly  tone,  and  are  now 
so  blue  as  to   be  slightly  out   of  harmony. 

St.  Joseph,  who  holds  the  sword-like  foliage  of  the  palm  in  his 
uplifted  left  hand,  advances  with  a  long  striding  step  to  the  Infant 
Jesus,  offering  the  Child  the  dates  he  has  plucked.  His  expression  is 
one  of  cheerful  satisfaction  ;  as  Meyer  happily  remarks,  he  has  entirely 
lost  the  air  of  subdued  and  mournful  humility  generally  ascribed  to  him  ; 
he  seems  not  only  to  rejoice  in  his  release  from  a  dubious  position, 
but  to  have  laid  aside  his  role  of  passive  spectator,  and,  for  the  tirst 
time,  to  be  associated  with  the  two  whose  importance  as  a  rule  so 
greatly  eclipses  his  own,  and  to  receive  his  share  of  the  angelic  homage. 

From  the  artistic  side  this  handsome  old  man  recalls  the  Apostles 
in  the  cupola  of  the  cathedral,  both  in  the  sobriety  with  which  the  nude 
parts  of  his  body  are  treated,  and  in  the  e.xaggerated  convolutions  of 
his  blue  robe  and  orange  mantle. 

Jesus,  a  little  boy  of  from  four  to  five  years  old,  tall,  slim,  and 
graceful,  with  soft  fair  curls  waving  on  his  neck,  leans  against  the 
Virgin's  shoulder.^  Laying  his  right  hand  on  that  of  St.  Joseph  to  take 
the  dates — an  action  which  produces  a  fine  eft'ect  of  contrast  in  the 
ilesh-tones — he  leans  back  to  his  mother  to  ask  for  water,  pointing  at 
the  cup  she  holds  out  to  a  flower-crowned  boy,  the  genius  of  the 
miraculous  spring.  She  lays  her  left  hand  on  the  yellow  veil  about 
her  shoulders  to  prevent  it  from  slipping  off,  and  draws  its  transparent 
folds,  through  which  her  crimson  robe  is  visible,  more  closely  about 
her.  This  instincti\e  by-play  by  no  means  diverts  her  attention  from 
the  Child,  at  whom  she  gazes  with  a  gentle  inclination  of  the  head  and 
a  smile  of  such  infinite  sweetness  as  to  awaken  the  deepest  sympathies 
of  the  spectator. 

In  the  background,  behind  .St.  Joseph,  an  angel,  whose  figure  is 
illuminated  by  the  sunshine,  ties  the  ass  to  the  stump  of  a  tree. 

'  TIktc  is  ail  old  copy  of  tlic  head  of  the  Child  in  the  Muiiieiiial  Gallery  at  \'erona, 
where  it  is  described  as  an  original  i)icture  by  C'orreggio. 


"  LA    NOI'Ti:  ••  289 

Not  only  the  group  of  angels  above,  but  the  part  of  the  Virgin's  face 
which  is  in  shadow,  the  back  of  the  Child,  and  the  legs  of  St.  Joseph, 
bear  the  traces  of  over-cleaning.  It  is  perfectly  untrue,  however,  that 
the  picture  "  was  ruined  "  by  a  .Spanish  apprentice,  who,  having  obtained 
leave  to  copy  it,  "  wa.shed  it  in  so  barbarous  a  fashion  that  he  left 
scarcely  an\-  paint  on  the  panel."  ^  Mengs  partially  cleaned  it,  but 
with   the  utmost  care." 

On  the  whole,  indeed,  taking  into  account  the  vicissitudes  under- 
gone by  most  of  Corregglo's  works,  the  condition  of  the  picture  is 
unusually  satisfactory.  The  perfect  harmony  of  the  tones  has  been 
disturbed  to  a  certain  extent  ;  but  the  enamelled  colour  has  still  an 
enchanting  splendour  and  transparence.  "  The  magic  effect  of  the 
sunshine  in  the  mysterious  forest  glade,"  says  Burckhardt,  "  the  love- 
liness ot  the  heads,  the  magnificent  colour,  and  the  indescribable  splen- 
dour of  the  whole,  make  this  work  one  of  the  painter's  masterpieces.' 

The  two  great  altar-pieces  we  are  now  about  to  describe  are  in  the 
Dresden  Gallery,  to  which  they  passed  with  other  pictures  sold  by  the 
Duke  of  Modena  to  Augustus  III.,  as  already  mentioned. 

Tlie  A^a/ivify,  so  well  known  as  Correggio's  Nolle,  was  also 
suggested  by  a  passage  in  one  of  the  apocryphal  gospels,  which 
relates  how  .St.  Joseph,  entering  the  stable  at  Bethlehem,  saw  the 
new-born  Child  shining  with  a  supernatural  radiance,  which  lighted 
up  the  figure  of  his  mother. 

All  the  figures  grouped  round  the  Babe  are  illuminated  by  the 
rays  from  his  body,  which  beams  in  the  midst  like  a  star.  Even  the 
angels  above  reflect  this  radiance.  In  his  Nalivily,  painted  for  the 
Carthusian  monastery  of  San  RIartino  at  Naples,  Guido  Reni, 
imitating  Correggio  without  perceiving  the  spiritual  and  pictorial 
significance  of  this  concentration,  represented  the  glory  of  angels 
as  receiving  their  light  from  heaven,  though  he  illuminated  the 
worshipping  shepherds  by  the  radiance  of  the  Child. 

In  Correggio's  picture,  the  stable  is  built  among  the  ruins  of  some 
ancient  house  or  temple  ;  the  Child  lies  in  a  manger  roughly  made  of 
wood,  on  a  bundle  of  straw  and  corn-cars.  The  foreshortened  upper 
part  of   his   luminous   little   body    is   swathed    in   a   white   linen    cloth. 

'  G.  N.  d'Azarn,  note  to  McngH,  ii.  p.  155.  -  Ratti,  ]j.  So.  ^  Op.  et  Inc.  cif. 


290  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

The  Virgin  kneels  beside  him,  gazing  at  him  with  smiling  rapture, 
and  gathering  him  gently  into  the  circle  of  her  arms.  Over  her 
soft  blue  under-dress  she  wears  a  crimson  robe  and  deep  blue  mantle. 
The  Infant  God  and  his  mother  form  the  radiant  nucleus  of  the  pic- 
ture, and  seem  transfigured  by  a  common  glory,  "as  befits  their 
ardent  love."  Three  figures  are  placed  in  front  of  them  to  the  left, 
and  a  dog,  whose  head  only  is  illuminated,  looks  up  from  below. 
The  figure  nearest  to  the  manger  in  this  group  is  a  youthful  shep- 
herdess, who  stands  against  a  column.  With  her  right  hand  she  holds 
a  basket,  out  of  which  two  goslings  peer  at  the  Child.  Her  left 
hantl  she  raises  to  shade  her  eyes  from  the  dazzling  light,  which 
forces  her  to  lower  her  eyelids,  and  contract  the  muscles  of  her 
face — a  realistic  action,  yet  so  instinct  with  grace,  that  the  beauty  of 
her  features  is  by  no  means  impaired.  Close  beside  her  a  youthful 
shepherd  kneels;  he  turns,  with  an  impulsive  movement  which  has 
given  the  painter  an  opportunity  for  a  very  effective  play  of  lights 
and  shadows,  to  an  old  man  with  unkempt  hair  and  beard,  who  wears 
a  short  tunic  of  dull  red,  and  is  in  the  act  of  raising  his  right  hand  to 
take  off  his  cap  ;  in  his  left  he  grasps  a  heavy  staff.  The  three  converse 
together  in  awe  of  the  glorious  event.  Among  the  clouds  above 
hovers  a  group  of  five  angels,  illuminated  by  the  light  which 
reaches  them  from  the  Babe,  but  less  brilliantly  than  the  figures 
below.  Mengs  and  others  suppose  this  to  indicate  that  they  are 
spirits,  and  not  corporeal  beings.  A  painter  of  the  Renaissance  is 
scarcely  likely  to  have  been  so  far  imbued  with  mediaeval  meta- 
physics. Correggio's  main  concern  v/as  with  the  pictorial  effect,  which 
demanded  a  strong  chiaroscuro  in  the  figures  of  the  shepherds,  that 
is  to  say,  in  the  central  part  of  the  picture,  and  not  in  the  angels  above. 
We  know  that  sentimental  minds  dislike  this  "  materialisation  "  of 
impressions  ;  but  honest  criticism  should  be  proof  against  the  seduc- 
tions of  academic  mysticism,  more  especially  in  the  case  of  an  artist 
like  Correggio,  whose  greatness  needs  not  the  foreign  aid  of  theology 
and  metaphysics. 

In  boldness  of  foreshortening  and  animation  of  action  these  angels 
are  closely  allied  to  those  in  the  cupola  of  the  cathedral.  Three  of 
them  gaze  with  joyful  smiles  at  the    Infant  Jesus  ;  the  other  two,  who 


the  British  Mu 


"  LA    NOTTE"  291 

seem  to  invite  the  shepherds  to  worship  him,  arc  more  vivacious.  One, 
who  is  robed  in  red,  and  faces  the  spectator,  advances,  clasping-  his 
hands  in  prayer  ;  the  other,  in  a  green  mantle,  who  is  seen  from  behind, 
draws  up  one  leg,  and  extends  the  other,  opening  his  arms,  and  de- 
scribing a  semicircle  in  his  (light,  as  he  looks  down  on  the  shepherds 
behind  him. 

On  the  ground  there  are  great  blocks  of  stones,  forming  steps,  and 
tall  plants,  all  paintc'd  in  greenish  tones,  and  shrouded  in  a  penumbni 
full  of  delicate  reflections.  An  admirable  relief  is  given  by  the  lumi- 
nous ray,  which,  passing  between  the  Virgin's  arms,  glances  on  her 
robe  and  mantle  near  one  knee,  and  the  lights,  which  follow  the 
outline  of  the  old  man's  figure,  and,  striking  off  towards  the  ground, 
define  a  kind  of  side  scene  which  marks  the  distance  between  the 
two  groups  of  figures. 

Behind  the  chief  group,  in  the  middle  distance,  St.  Joseph  endeav- 
ours to  draw  away  the  ass  from  the  manger  to  the  barrier,  beyond 
which  arc  two  other  shepherds  with  an  ox.  Against  the  horizon 
stretches  a  long  line  of  blue  hills,  and  the  sky  above  brightens  with 
the   first   faint   radiance   of  dawn. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  something  has  been  lost  of  the  original 
l)rilliance  and  vivacity  of  this  picture.  The  shadows  have  darkened, 
the  azures  have  suffered,  the  flesh-tones,  robbed  of  their  delicate  glaz- 
ings, have  become  slightly  monotonous.  We  might  point  out  yet 
other  traces  left  by  the  restorer  and  the  cleaner  ;  added  to  which,  the 
varnish  has  perished.  These  various  causes  detract,  of  course,  from 
the  general  effect  of  a  work  ^  which  so  delighted  V'asari  that  he  de- 
clared the  angels  seemed  rather  to  have  "  fallen  in  a  shower  from 
heaven,  than  to  have  been  fashioned  by  a  painter's  hand," '-'  and 
moved  Scannelli  to  one  of  the  magniloquent  fiights  dear  to  the 
rhetorician  of  the   seventeenth  century.'' 

1  The  effect  of  this  picture  and  of  others  by  Corroggio  at  Dresden  is  also  greatly 
injured  by  the  crowded  state  of  the  Gallery,  and  the  strong  red  of  the  wall  on  which 
they  are  hung.  The  works  of  this  master  and  his  scholars  would  show  to  greater  ad- 
vantage in  a  room  by  themselves,  against  a  dark  gray  background.  "  Viie,  iv.  p.  117. 

3  Op.  at.  p.  295.  See  also  G.  von  Buquoy,  IVork  der  Jjegeiskrinig  vor  der  Nacht  des 
Ccrrcggio,  1825.  For  supposed  studies  for  the  picture,  see  Meyer,  p.  30S  ct  scq.  There 
is  an  important  drawing,  freely  treated,  but  with  great  variety,  and  very  interesting  as  a 
study  of  effect,  in  the  P.ritish  Museum.     The  drawing  in  the  Weimar  .Museum  we  do 


292  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGCxIO 

This  picture  was  another  to  which  a  tradition  was  attached. 
"  Correggio,"  says  an  old  writer,  "  desiring  to  produce  an  effect  of 
night,  would  not  allow  his  work  to  be  admired  save  at  night-time,  or  if 


CORREGGIO  ! 


in  the  day,  in  a  darkened  room,  lighted  by  candles  ;  when  thus  seen, 
many   additional   figures  of  shepherds,   women,  and    animals   became 

not  believe  to  be  liy  ( 'oirc,L,'t;io,  It  is  a  later  work  of  the  liolo^nese  school.  There 
is  also  a  study  of  an  an^^el's  head  in  this  ninscinn,  illuminated  from  below,  which 
some  persons   mainlain   to   be  a   study   for   /,.;   Nolle' 


The  Xafivitv 


HISTORY    OF   "I, A    NOTTIC  "  '  293 

visible,   painted   with  so  imicli  art  that  they  seemed    to  hick  nothing 
but  Hfe."  1 

The  history  of  La  Noftc  is  a  very  simple  one.  Alberto  Pratoneri 
ordered  it  for  the  altar  of  his  chapel  in  the  church  of  San  Prospero  at 
Rcq'gio.      The   correspondence  between  him  and   the  painter  is  pre- 


served in  the  archives  of  the  State  of  Modena.  "  Be  it  known  to  all 
that  I,  Alberto  Pratonero,  by  these  words  written  with  my  own  hand, 
promise  to  give  to  Master  Antonio  of  Correggio,  painter,  two  hundred 
and  eight  pounds  of  the  old  Reggian  currency,  and  this,  in  payment 
of  a  picture  which  he  promises  to  paint  for  me  with  his  utmost  skill, 
wherein  he  is  to  represent  the  Nativity  of  our  Lord,  with  such  figures 
'  Alfonso  Isacchi,AVA?;/,wtw?'<7/,/J/,?,/,w;/,rr//y?,x.w,  p.  36.    Reggio,  16 19.    Ratti,  p.  103. 


294  ANTONIO    DA    rORRECxGIO 

as  pertain  to  the  subject,  according  to  the  size  and  measurements  of 
the  drawing  by  his  own  hand  submitted  to  me  by  the  said  Master 
Antonio.  At  Reggio,  on  the  14th  day  of  October,  mdxxii.  On 
the  day  aforesaid  I  handed  over  to  him  forty  pounds  of  the  ancient 
currency,  in  part  payment." 

Beneath  this  declaration  of  Pratoncri's,  the  painter  wrote  as  follows  : 
"And  I,  Antonio  Lieto  of  Correggio,  declare  that  I  received  the  sum 
mentioned  on  the  day  and  in  the  year  aforesaid,  in  token  of  which  I 
have  written  this  with  my  own  hand."  '  The  picture,  however,  was 
not  completed  and  placed  over  the  altar  until  eight  years  later,  in  1530, 
as  we  learn  from  the  inscription  by  which  Alberto  and  Gabriele 
Pratoneri  commemorated  the  event.- 

Before  the  sixteenth  century  had  run  its  course,  the  Estensi  had 
determined  to  acquire  the  picture,  and  had  already  prepared  the  way 
for  seizing  it.  We  find  traces  of  their  designs  in  a  letter  written  by 
Fulvio  Rangoni  from  Reggio  on  December  27,  1587,  and  addressed  to 
Alfonso  II. 's  secretary  :  "Some  time  ago  died  the  Cavaliere  Pratoneri, 
and  shortly  after  him  Messcr  Giulio,  which  two  were  the  owners  of 
Correggio's  Nativity,  now  on  their  altar  in  the  church  of  San  Prospero. 
It  has  become  the  property  of  two  minors,  and  I  do  not  think  they 
could  agree  to  its  removal,  besides  which,  I  do  not  know  how  it  would 
please  the  priests,  who  one  and  all  account  the  picture  a  great  treasure. 
Nevertheless,  I  will  make  every  effort  to  overcome  these  difficulties, 
and  to  do  your  Serene  Highness's  pleasure,  if  I  see  any  possible  means 
of  obtaining  it."  "^ 

1  Gins.  Campori,  Rclazimic  di  tin  ai/totiraf,)  del  Corrci^i^io  riiivcnido  iiclf  anJiivio 
palatino  di  Modcna  {Atti  (  iiicmoric  ddlc  R.  Dcpufazioni  di  s/oria  palria  per  Ic  proviiuie 
viodeiicsi  e  parmcnsi,  i.  p-  34  ct  scij.  Modena,  1863).  This  autograph,  whicli  was  found 
in  the  books  of  the  Pratoneri  family,  perhaps  came  into  the  hands  of  Duke  Francesco  I. 
of  Este,  together  with  the  picture.  See  a  letter  written  by  Gius.  Bigellini  to  Padre  Resta 
in  1688,  in  Bottari's  Raccolta  di  lettere  artistictie,  iii.  p.  499,  and  La  scrittura  di  artisii 
italiani  riprodotta  con  la  fotograjia  da  Carlo  Pint,  e  corredata  di  notizie  da  Gaefatio 
Milancsi,  plate  115.     Florence,  1876. 

'^  Alberliis  ct  Gabriel  Prafoncrii  liccc  de  Ilieronynii  pareii/is  optinii  seiite?i/ia  fieri 
vidiicnaif  an?!,  mdxxx.  This  inscription  is  affixed  to  the  pilaster  to  the  right  of  the 
Pratoneri  chapel  in  San  Prospero. 

^  Paolo  Ottavi,  Due  /jiiadri del  Corrci^i^io,  p.  iii.  Sec  also  P,.  Galclani's  Relazione, 
in  the  Atfi  e  nieniorie  delta  R.  Deputazioiie  di  s/oria  palria  per  la  Roniapia,  year  i.  ]i.  66. 
Hologna,  1862. 


HISTORY    OF    '-LA    NOTTE  "  29:; 

Rather  more  than  a  century  later  the  Esteasi  accoinpHshed  tlieir 
design,  not  by  the  difficult  and  tedious  process  of  negotiation,  but  by 
the  more  expeditious  methods  of  violence  and  robbery.  A  contem- 
porary chronicle  written  in  the  Libra  del  dcfnnti  of  San  Prospero 
records  that  in  May,  1640,  the  picture  was  sacrilegiously  carried  off  by 
order  of  Duke  Francesco,  and  taken  to  Modena,  to  the  inexpressible 
grief  of  all  the  citizens.^ 

The  Madonna  zuiih  St.  George  was  originally  in  the  Oratory  or 
Sciio/a  of  St.  Peter  Martyr  at  Modena,  which  was  suppressed  in 
18S0  and    incorporated   with   the   municipal   hospital. - 

In  the  delicate  and  precious  little  bistre  drawing,  heightened  with 
white,  now,  like  the  picture,  in  the  Dresden  Gallery,  the  architectonic 
frame,  with  its  two  Doric  columns,  is  introduced.  If,  as  Mengs  ^  and 
Ratti  ^  assert,  this  frame  was  not  of  wood,  nor  of  any  moulded  substance, 
but  was  painted  by  Corregglo  or  one  of  his  pupils  on  the  wall  itself, 
Pungileoni's  hypothesis  gains  greatly  in  probability.  He  supposed 
the  picture  to  have  been  finished  in  1532,  having  discovered  in 
Lancellotti's  chronicle  that  the  oratory  was  decorated  in  February 
of  that  year.  This  fact  agrees  sufficiently  with  the  artistic  evidences 
of  the  work  itself,  to  justify  us  in  assuming  that  the  picture  was 
painted  about    153  i.'' 

1  hat  the  Brotherhood  guarded  their  treasure  jealously  may  be 
inferred  from  their  refusal  to  allow  a  young  painter,  one  Domenico 
Moni,  to  copy  it.  They  declared  they  would  not  again  subject  it  to 
the  dangers  it  had  undergone  when  it  had  been  removed  from  its  place 
to  enable  Bartolomeo  Passarotti  and  Francesco  Madonnina  to  make 
copies.      But  all  their  care  availed  them  nothing  against  the  arbitrary 

1  MS.  book  of  the  Deputies  of  the  church  of  San  Prospero  di  Reggie,  from  16 13  to 
1654.  Pungileoni  (ii.  p.  212),  transcribing  the  memorandum,  abridges  it,  out  of  deference 
for  the  Estensi,  to  one  of  whom  he  dedicated  his  work  on  Correggio.  He  suppresses 
the  words  quod  sacrikgium  Francisci  Duds  nostri  iitssu  pci-pctratuin.  For  the  history  of 
the  picture,  see  also  A.  Venturi,  R.  Galkria  esUnse,  pp.  226,  305,  318,  346. 

^  L.  F.  Valdrighi,  Aggiunta  alk  appcndici  c  note  al  Dizionario  storico  itiiiwlogico  delle 
contrade  e  spazi pubblici  di  Mode/m,  \)\).  50-51.      Modena,  i  S93. 

3  Opere,  ii.  p.  162.  ^   Op.  cit.  p.  94. 

^  Tommasino  de'  Bianchi,  called  de'  Lancellotti,  Cronaca  modenese,  iii.  p.  391. 
Parma,  1S65.  "The  Brotherhood  of  the  house  of  God  of  St.  Peter  Martyr  has  had  its 
scuola  painted,  which  was  rebuilt  some  few  years  ago."  Pungileoni,  i.  ji.  217  et  seq.  ; 
ii.  p.  235  et  seq.     Meyer,  pp.  211,  315. 


296 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


violence  of  Francesco  I.  of  Este,  who  in  1649  removed  the  picture, 
promising,  in  compensation,  a  handsome  donation  to  the  fraternity,  and 
a  copy  of  the  work  by  Guercino,  who  took  upon  himself  to  alter  the 
proportions,  in  order  to  allow  more  ample  space  for  the  figures  ! 

A  quarter  of  a  century  before  the  sale  of  the  picture  to  Augustus 
III.,  it  was  promised  by  the  ambassador  of  the  Estensi  at  the  Court  of 

France  to  Dubois,  in 
acknowledgment  of  his 
services  in  negotiating 
a  marriage  between 
Prince  Francesco  d'Este 
and  the  Princess  Char- 
lotte Agliie  of  Orleans, 
and  perhaps  as  a  bait  for 
further  political  favours. 
But  the  diplomatist  had 
reckoned  without  his 
host.  The  Duke  op- 
posed the  gift  most 
energetically,  although 
ij  the  poor  envoy,  thus 
left  in  the  lurch,  hasten- 
ed to  point  out  to  his 
master  that  state  inter- 
ests were  of  greater 
moment  than  pigments, 
canvas,  and  a  painter's 
lame,  and  that  the  safety  of  Mirandola  perhaps  depended  on  the 
|)icture  1  ^ 

The  Virgin,  in  crimson  robe  and  blue  mantle,  the  Child  uplifted 
in  her  arms,  is  seated  on  a  lofty  throne  in  front  of  an  open  arch, 
through  which  the  distant  landscape  is  visible.  The  Infant  turns, 
with  outstretched  hands  and  an  eager  smile,  to  the  group   of  turreted 


STUDY   FOR  THE  MADONNA  WITH  ST.  GIi 

In  the  Dresden  Muse 


'  \Liitiin,  Calkria  akiise,  ]i.  ayS  ,V  .f,y.  The 
Urcsdcn,  and  has  been  restored  in  |ikices.  Of  (.'dm 
(iallery  it  is  ihc  best  preserved  on  the  wliole. 


red   m  Us  journey  to 
vorks  in  the  Dresden 


The  Madonna  luii/i  Si.   George. 


'THE    MADONNA    WITH    S'l'.   CEORC;! 


buildings  representing  Modena,  which  St.  Geminianus,  a  command- 
ing figure  in  episcopal  robes,  is  about  to  take  from  the  arms  of  the; 
beautiful  angel  who  carries  them,  to  offer  them  to  Jesus. 

The  Virgin,  a  lovely  and  blooming  young  matron,  whose  abundant 
hair  waves  over  her  shoulders,  inclines  her  head  towards  the  opposite 
side,  where  St.  Peter  Martyr,  pointing  to  the  church  of  which  he  is 
patron,  appears  to  be  interceding  for  the  faithful.^  In  the  foreground 
stand  St.  George  and  St.  John  the  Baptist.  The  first,  a  knightly  figure 
with  silver  cuirass  and  crimson  mantle,  has  his  back  to  the  spectator, 
but  turns  his  head  towards 
him.  The  saint  is  a  heroic 
conception  ;  his  attitude  full 
of  quiescent  power,  his  face 
of  a  frank  and  vigorous  cast. 
The  large  and  thoughtful 
eyes,  the  broad  brow,  the 
nascent  beard,  the  abundant 
hair,  make  up  a  perfect  type 
of  noble  and  valiant  youth. 
The  tranquillity  of  the  pose, 
with  left  hand  laid  on  hip, 
and  right  on  lance,  and  foot 
on  the  dragon's  severed 
head,  suofo-ests  the   dormant  ''""''  '"^  '"■"^'  '"''  '""  "■^''"'~''' ''"" 

°°  In  the  Unizi,    Florence. 

Strength  ready  to  leap  forth 

in  a  just  quarrel.  The  painter  shows  a  true  artistic  judgment  in  the 
omission  of  the  dragon's  fantastic  body,  which  would  either  have  made 
a  confused  and  intricate  passage  where  it  was  least  desirable,  or  else 
must  have  been  reduced  to  proportions  so  insignificant  as  to  destroy  all 
its  terrors.  By  painting  only  the  enormous  head,  the  master  perfectly 
suggests  all  the  vague  horror  of  the  slaughtered  monster's  bulk. 

St.  John  the  Baptist,  his  cross  in  his  hand,  turns  to  the  spectator, 
pointing  out  the  Virgin  and  Child.      He  is  represented  as  a  healthy 


'  The  knife,  the  instrument  of  his  martyrdom,  rests  upon  his  head,  hut  is  ah 
hidden  by  his  hair.  The  haft  of  the  dagger  in  his  breast  is  just  visible  outside 
blaek  mantle. 


29S  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

and  comely  youth,  bending  forward  in  a  graceful  attitude  on  his  left 
leg,  the  foot  of  which  rests  on  the  first  step  of  the  throne.  His 
fur  underdress,  and  crimson  mantle,  girded  round  his  loins  with  a 
cord,  are  loosely  draped  about  his  body,  leaving  his  arms  and  legs 
almost  bare.  In  the  conception  of  this  figure  there  is  no  hint  of 
the  traditional  asceticism  of  the  harbinger  of  Christ.  He  is  young, 
jocund,   robust  ;    his  smile  is  that  of  some  sportive  faun. 

In  front  of  the  throne,  four  little  angels  are  playing  with  St. 
George's  armour.  The  one  in  the  centre  attempts  to  draw  the  sword 
from  its  sheath  ;  the  two  just  behind  him  lift  up  the  helmet  to  place  it 
on  the  head  of  the  fourth,  who,  expectant  of  the  burden,  supports 
himself  on  his  neighbour's  leg,  bending  his  little  body  with  irresistibly 
comic  grace.  The  angel  who  bears  the  model  of  the  city  of  Modena 
observes  this  by-play  with  evident  amusement. 

Scannelli  records  a  graceful  compliment  paid  by  Guido  Reni  to 
the  beauty  of  these  angels.  He  was  accustomed,  whenever  he  met 
a  citizen  of  Modena,  to  ask  him  if  "  Correggio's /^//z'/  at  San  Pietro 
Martire  had  grown  up,  and  left  their  places  in  the  picture  where  he 
had  last  seen  them,  for  so  vivid  and  life-like  were  they  that  it  was 
impossible  to  believe  they  could  remain  in  their  original  form."  ^ 

The  distribution  of  light  and  shade  is  so  masterly,  that  every  figure 
in  the  somewhat  intricate  arabesque  is  clearly  and  coherently  defined. 
This  lucidity  of  general  effect  in  a  comjiosition  unusually  rich  in  detail 
is  due  to  the  transparent  quality  of  the  colour,  and  the  sense  of  space 
and  atmosphere  conveyed  by  the  painter.  Guercino,  as  we  have  seen, 
felt  it  necessary  to  allow  more  space  for  the  figures.  As  may  be  sup- 
posed, the  richness  of  the  architectural  setting  corresponds  to  that  of 
the  figures  below.  In  the  angles  on  either  side  of  the  arch,  the 
keystone  of  which  is  ornamented  with  a  cherub's  head,  two  figures 
of  youthful  genii  are  painted  in  a  monochrome  of  yellow,  simulating 
a  gold  relief  They  appear  from  behind  festoons  of  flowers,  and, 
caryatid-wise,  support  a  border  of  interwoven  canes,  with  a  Manteg- 
nesque  garland  of  leaves  and  fruit. 

Behind  the  arch  stretches  an  open  plain,  varied  by  a  few  trees,  a 
few  buildings,  and  beyond,  the  delicate  curve  of  a  distant  hill. 
^  Microcosmo,  p.  294. 


THE    MADONNA    WITH    ST.   GEORGE 


In  this  picture,  which  may  be  considered  the  last  sacred  subject 
painted  by  Correggio,  we  note  the  recurrence  of  certain  motives  he 
made  use  of  in  his  early  works,  more  especially  in  the  Franciscan  altar- 
piece  of  1 5  15.  It  is  as  if  the  soul  of  the  artist  paused  for  a  moment, 
alarmed  at  the  pictorial  boldness  of  his  later  efforts,  with  a  touch  of 
regretful  yearn- 
ing for  tradition- 
al simplicity.  In 
all  probability  he 
painted  the  pic- 
ture in  Correg- 
gio,  whither  he 
retired  towards 
the  end  of  1530, 
sorrowing  for  the 
loss  of  his  wife, 
and  disgusted 
with  epigrams 
and  criticism. 
There,  in  his 
modest  but 
peaceful  home, 
surrounded  by 
his  aged  parents, 
his  children,  his 
fellow  -  citizens, 
and  near  his 
early  friend,  Ve- 
ronica Gambara,  his  mind  soothed  and  tranquillised  by  contemplation 
of  the  broad  plains  and  ample  horizons  of  his  native  territory,  he  must 
have  felt  a  desire  to  infuse  something  of  the  calm  of  soul  and  place 
into  his  works,  and  to  return  to  his  old  ideals. 

He  could  not,  indeed,  retrograde  from  that  breadth  of  treatment, 
that  splendour  of  colour,  and  that  technical  mastery  he  had  attained  ; 
but  it  cannot  be  denied  that  this  Madonna  with  St.  George  differs 
from    the    other    pictures  described   in    this    chapter    in    the   greater 


.ving  in  the  Uftizi,  Floren 


300  ANTONIO    DA    CORRECxGIO 

simplicity  of  its  composition,  wliich  has  something  of  the  old  traditional 
symmetry  of  arrangement.  In  the  arch  which  opens  in  the  back- 
ground, in  the  regularity  with  which  the  figures  are  disposed,  and 
even  in  certain  details,  such  as  the  stool  under  the  Virgin's  feet,  and 
the  little  angel  in  monochrome  who  supports  it,  we  discern  a  far-off 
echo  of  youthful  conceptions.^ 

There  is  a  drawing  by  Correggio  in  the  Uffizi  which  is  un- 
questionably authentic.  It  represents  St.  John  with  the  lamb,  and 
St.  Roch,  seated  in  the  foreground,  against  a  background  of  woody 
landscape  ;  and  standing  behind  them,  St.  Agatha,  with  her  breasts 
on  a  plate,  and  St.  Anthony  with  his  pig  at  his  feet. 

It  is  not  known  whether  Correggio  ever  painted  a  picture  with 
these  saints.  Shortly  before  his  death,  however,  he  engaged  to  paint 
an  altar-piece  for  Alberto  Panciroli  of  Reggio,  and  received 
twenty-five  gold  saidi  on  account,  which  his  father  had  to  refund 
on  June    15,  1534.- 

'  There  are  several  drawings  at  Dresden  and  Florence  of  the  children  who  are 
sporting  in  front  of  the  throne,  in  particular  of  the  one  who  draws  the  sword  from  the 
sheath.  The  only  one  of  these  drawings  which  may  perhaps  be  authentic  is  that  in  the 
Uffizi,  numbered  1 949  F.  In  the  Louvre  and  at  Vienna  there  are  two  identical  drawings 
of  a  Madonna  and  Child,  which  are  supposed  to  be  studies  for  the  picture.  They  are 
studies  for  a  picture  of  which  there  is  a  complete  drawing  in  the  Weimar  Museum, 
certainly  not  by  Correggio.  In  1847  the  Accademia  di  Belle  Arti  at  Parma  pronounced 
a  picture  of  St.  George  and  St.  Peter  Martyr,  then  in  the  possession  of  Signor  Boucheron. 
a  professor  of  painting  at  Turin,  to  be  a  replica  of  the  two  saints.  It  now  belongs  to 
the  lanetti  family  of  Florence.  See  Carlo  Malaspina,  Di  tin  fiuovo  difinto  ad  olio  di 
A.  A.  da  Correggio,  in  the  supplement  to  the  Gazzetia  di  Parma,  no.  34,  April  28,  1S47, 
and  M.  Leoni,  Belle  Arti,  in  the  Indicatore  parmense,  year  i.  no.  13,  1847. 

-  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  297.     Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  252. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

MYTHOLOGICAL   AND   ALLEGORICAL   PICTURES 

"ANTIOPE" — "the       education      of      CUPID  " — EVENTS      IN      CORREGGIO — WORKS 

EXECUTED      FOR     FEDERIGO      GONZAGA      AND     THEIR      HISTORY — "  10  " "  DANAE  " 

"LEDA"--"  GANYMEDE" — "  VICE  "    AND    "VIRTUE" — "THE   LOVES    OF   JUPITER." 

THE  majority  of  Corregglo's 
mythological  and  allegori- 
cal pictures  were  painted 
in  the  last  years  of  his  life.  Two, 
however,  were  executed  so  early 
as  1 52 1  or  1522.  These  are 
the  Edncation  of  Cupid  and  the 
j-liitiopc,  both  of  which  were  in 
the  ducal  gallery  at  Mantua  until 
1630. 

In  the  Invcniojy  of  this  col- 
lection compiled  in  1627,  the 
Aniiopc  is  erroneously  described 
as  Venus,  a  sleeping  Cupid,  and 
a  Satyr} 
ii.  p.  153. 


D'Arco,  op.  at. 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


Antlopc,  a  life-size  nude  figure,  lies  extended  on  a  linen  drapery, 
spread  over  a  piece  of  rising  ground,  beneath  a  dense  thicket  of  trees. 


the  Royal  Library,  Winds' 


Her  right  arm  supports  her  head  in  such  a  manner  as  to  show  the  full 
curve  of  the  neck,  shaded  by  a  few  stray  locks  of  her  fair  hair.  The 
ample  development  of  the  bust  is  in  somewhat  curious  contrast  with 


"ANTIOPE"  303 

the  foreshortened  legs,  which  have  a  slightly  shrunken  appearance. 
But  the  difficulties  of  the  pose  have  been  overcome  with  such  novel 
ease  and  vigour  as  to  excite  the  admiration  of  artists  in  successive 
generations,  Rembrandt  among  the  number,  and  Guercino,  who 
imitated  the  attitude  in  his  Sttsainia/i,  now  in  the  Pitti  Gallery  at 
Florence.  The  nymph  sleeps  ;  but  the  warm,  soft  flesh  of  her 
superbly  modelled  body  seems  to  quiver,  as  if  under  the  influence  of 
some  voluptuous  dream. ^  Antiope,  daughter  of  Nycteus,  King  of 
Thebes,  and  the  nymph  Poly.xo,  was  famous  throughout  Greece  for 
her  beauty  and  her  adventures.  Jupiter,  desiring  to  possess  her, 
transformed  himself   into  a  Satyr. 

Correggio,  or  the  friend  who  furnished  him  with  the  argument 
of  his  picture,  has  confused  two  distinct  mythological  personalities. 
The  bow  under  Antiope's  left  hand,  and  the  large  quiver,  covered 
with  hide,  in  the  background,  show  that  he  supposed  the  Antiope 
beloved  by  Jupiter  to  have  been,  not  the  daughter  of  Nycteus, 
but  her  namesake,  the  Queen  of  the  Amazons,  and  daughter  of 
Mars. 

Jove  is  not  portrayed  as  a  hideous  and  repulsive  Satyr.  His 
shaggy  legs  and  goat's  feet  are  counterbalanced  by  the  smiling  charm 
of  his  face  and  expression.  Human  comeliness  so  far  predominates  in 
his  appearance  that  he  might  be  termed  a  beautiful  monster.  Ap- 
proaching the  nymph,  he  raises  her  linen  drapery  with  both  hands,  and 
contemplates  her  fair  form  with  amorous  delight.  His  swarthy  skin, 
dappled  with  transparent  shadows,  is  exquisitely  contrasted  with  the 
brilliant  and  luminous  carnations  of  Antiope,  and  of  the  Cupid 
who  slumbers  near  her,  curled  up  on  a  lion's  skin.  The  little  winged 
god  is  a  plump  and  blooming  cherub  ;  his  sleep,  unlike  that  of  his 
companion,  is  deep  and  unconscious.  His  torch  has  fallen  to  the 
ground  beside  him.- 

In  1625,  Charles  I.  of  England  despatched  his  music-master, 
Nicholas  Laniere,  to  Italy,  to  buy  pictures  for  him.      Immediately  on 

1  There  is  a  very  delicate  study  of  the  Antiope  in  the  Royal  Library  at  Windsor. 

"  A  drawing  in  the  Louvre,  ascribed  to  Correggio,  rejircsents  a  naked  woman  lying 
on  the  ground,  surrounded  by  cuiiids  and  children,  in  an  attitude  very  similar  to  that  of 
the  Antiope. 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


his  arrival,  Laniere  put  himself  into  communication  with  one  Daniele 
Nys,  a  picture-dealer,  and  begged  him  to  procure  something  for  the 
King  from  the  Mantuan  collection.  Among  the  letters  written  by 
Nys  to  Laniere,  there  is  one  dated  April  27,  1628,  in  which  he  refers 
to  his  purchase  of  the  greater  part  of  this  collection  from  Vincenzo  II. 
Gonzaga,  not  long  before  the  death  of  the  latter.  He  adds,  that 
when  the  transaction  became  known,  the  citizens  took  it  very  ill,  and 

protested  so  vigorously  that 
the  Duke  was  alarmed,  and 
would  have  paid  double  the 
money  to  be  rid  of  the 
bargain  ;  but  the  agreement 
had  been  made,  and  it  would 
have  been  neither  safe  nor 
seemly  to  play  a  King  of 
England  false.  The  Antiope 
and  the  Education  of  Cupid 
were  among  the  pictures 
which  Thomas  Brown, 
captain  of  the  ship  I\Iar- 
i^aret,  took  to  London  in 
162S.1 

After  the  execution  of 
Charles  I.,  the  Parliament 
ordered  his  art  treasures  to 
be  sold,  and  this  was  accord- 
ingly done  on  three  several  occasions,  in  1649,  1650,  and  1653.  The 
Antiope  passed  into  the  possession  of  the  banker  Jabach,  a  resident 
in  Paris,  and  a  great  lover  of  the  arts.  Cardinal  Mazarin  bought 
it  from  him  for  twenty-five  thousand  francs  ;  on  the  death  of  the 
cardinal,  it  was  acquired  by  Louis  XIV.,  and  is  now  in  the  Louvre. 
The   history   of  the   Education  of  Cupid  is  identical  with   that    of 

1  Noel  Saintslniry,  Ori;^iiittl  unpuhlislini  papers  illustrative  of  tlie  life  of  Sir  Peter 
Paul  Rubens  as  an  artist  and  diplomatist,  p.  28S  et  seq.  London,  1859.  Meyer, 
pp.  236  and  337. 


"THE    EDUCATION    OF   CUPID"  305 

the  ^-liiiiopc,  clown  to  the  time  of  the  dispersal  of  Charles  I. 's  collections. 
It  was  in  the  Duke  of  Mantua's  gallery,  and  figures  in  the  Inventory 
of  1627.^  It  then  became  the  property  of  the  King  of  England,  and 
at  the  sale  of  his  pictures,  was  bought  for  ^40  by  the  Duke  of  Alva, 
and  taken  to  Spain.  It  afterwards  belonged  to  Godoy.  Prince  of  the 
Peace,  who  sold  his  collection  in  1S08,  during  the  French  occupation 
of  Madrid,  and  was  then  acquired  by  Murat,  who  brought  it  back  to 
Italy  and  placed  it  in  the  royal  palace  at  Naples.  The  travels  of  the 
unfortunate  picture,  which  had  been  bandied  about  from  one  collection 
to  another  for  two  centuries,  were  not  yet  over.  Caroline  Bonaparte, 
ex-Oueen  of  Naples,  took  it  to  Vienna,  and  sold  it  in  1834  to  the 
Marquis  of  Londonderry,  from  whom  it  was  finally  purchased  by  the 
English  Government,  together  with  the  Eccc  Homo  already  described, 
and  other  pictures. - 

The  lapse  of  time,  its  innumerable  journeys,  and  various  restorations 
of  a  not  very  felicitous  kind,  have  robbed  the  picture  of  its  original 
brilliance,  but  the  painter's  intention  is  still  evident.  He  aimed  at  the 
luminous  effect  to  be  won  from  the  juxtaposition  of  the  pearly  carnations 
and  the  opaque  tones  of  the  forest  background,  a  dense  grove,  through 
which  not  the  smallest  streak  of  sky  is  visible.  Venus  stands  upright, 
her  arm  resting  on  a  projecting  branch,  a  bow  in  her  hand,  and  looks 
straight  out  of  the  picture.  Her  form  is  finely  moulded,  but  her  face 
has  little  of  the  seductive  beauty  proper  to  the  Queen  of  Love.  The 
painter's  ideal  type  was  not  yet  attained,  and  his  Venus  differs  but  very 
slightly  from  the  Madonnas  of  the  Prado  and  Hampton  Court,  the 
Diana  of  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo,  and,  as  far  as  we  can  judge  by  the 
copies,  the  Albinea  Madonna.  The  technique,  however,  shows  a 
higher   stage  of  development,   a  deeper  sensibility,  and  suggests  that 

1  D'Arco,  op.  at.  p.  153.  At  a  Liter  date  there  was  a  copy  of  the  picture  in  the 
gallery  of  Gonzaga  of  Novellara,  attributed  to  Parmigianino.  I'his  was  perhaps  one  of 
the  pictures  confided  to  Alessandro  Gonzaga  by  the  Lords  of  Correggio  in  1636  (see 
letters  of  the  Prince  of  Correggio,  in  the  communal  archives  at  Novellara,  and  G.  Campori, 
Cataloghi  cd  inraitari,  already  quoted,  p.  639),  and  may  have  been  the  one  which 
afterwards  belonged  to  the  Odescalchi  and  the  Duke  of  Orleans  (Mengs,  ii.  p.  150; 
Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  279). 

2  Mengs,  ii.  p.  178;  INIeyer,  pp.  238  and  340;  Sir  F.  W.  Burton,  Ca/a!ogiic,  p.  5; 
M.  Compton  Hcaton,  p.  Ci  ;   Frizzoni,  Aiie  italiana,  p.  357,  etc. 


3o6  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

the  picture  was  painted  at  a  later  date  than  the  above,  probably  about 
[522,  as  has  been  generally  supposed.  A  very  peculiar  feature  of  the 
work  is  the  pair  of  wings  with  which  the  painter  has  endowed  his 
Venus,  perhaps  to  give  a  touch  of  divinity  to  her  figure,  perhaps  in 
allusion  to  her  fabled  origin.  The  same  peculiarity  distinguishes  his 
Fates  in  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo. 

Mercury,  nude  but  for  the  little  cloak  which  falls  from  his  shoulders, 
his  winged  sandals,  and  his  hat,  is  seated  opposite.  Me  holds  a  scroll 
which  lies  over  his  knee  with  his  left  hand,  presenting  it  to  the  infant 
Cupid,  who  cons  his  task  attentively. 

We  are  present,  apparently,  at  a  little  domestic  incident  of  that 
happy  interlude  when  Mercury  found  favour  with  the  goddess,  and 
made  her  the  mother  of  Hermaphroditus.  Cupid  could  not  have  found 
a  better  master  !  But  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  his  teacher  in- 
structed him  in  any  of  the  lofty  sciences  of  which  he  was  the  inventor. 
The  mischievous  god  had  little  time  for  abstruse  studies.  At  most  he 
may  have  lingered  to  read  some  pleasant  fable,  for  Mercury,  as  we 
know,  was  credited  with  the  invention  of  the  apologue.  The  arts  most 
skilfully  taught  by  the  master,  and  most  aptly  learnt  by  the  scholar, 
were,  no  doubt,  agility,  dexterity,  and  craft. 

Mercury  is  represented  as  a  youth,  but,  like  the  Graces  in  the 
Camera  di  San  Paolo,  he  is  robust  and  muscular.  He  has  none  of  the 
classic  slenderness  of  mould  by  which  the  ancients  symbolised  his 
switt  and  airy  flight.  Yet  this  vigour  is  not  incompatible  with  grace, 
as  is  shown  by  the  inclination  of  his  smiling  head  to  the  little  scholar 
at  his  knee.^ 

The  Cupid,  with  his  budding  wings  and  fair  curls,  is  the  most 
dainty  passage  in  the  composition.  The  attitude  in  which  he  has 
placed  himself  to  read  is  delicious.  To  bring  his  eyes  nearer  to  the 
scroll,  he  bends  his  knees  slightly,  and,  with  comic  intentness,  follows 
the  letters  with  the  finger  of  his  right  hand. 

Mengs  gracefully  describes  the  work  as  follows  :  "  The  Cupid's 
curling  hair  is  so  marvellously  rendered  that  we  seem  to  be  able  to  see 
the  skin  through  it,  and  in  spite  of  this  finish,  there  is  no  dryness  in 
'   Thcri;  is  a  small  sludy  for  tlic  head  of  Mercury  in  the  Uftizi. 


ALLEGRI'S    RETURN    TO    CORRl'GGIO  .-507 

the  treatment.  His  little  wings  are  like  those  of  newly-fledged 
chickens,  which  show  the  growth  of  the  sprouting  quills  and  the 
skin  below.  Whenever  Correggio  painted  wings  he  showed  the  same 
mastery  in  their  treatment,  placing  them  immediately  behind  the 
shoulders,  and  incorporating  them  so  naturally  with  the  flesh  that  they 
seem  to  form  part  of  the  acromion.  The  late  Duke,  who  owned  the 
picture,  once  very  justly  remarked  to  me  that  this  Cupitl's  wings  were 
so  skilfully  placed,  that  were  it  possible  for  a  child  to  beborn  with 
wings,  they  would  grow  exactly  in  such  a  manner." 

The  frescoes  of  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo,  Autiopi\  and  the 
Ediicatiou  of  Cupid,  are  the  only  surviving  mythological  subjects 
painted  by  Correggio  before  he  undertook  the  frescoes  in  the  cathe- 
dral. All  the  others  were  executed  after  1530,  and  consequently 
at  Correggio,  after  he  had  quitted  Parma  for  reasons  to  which  we 
have  already  alluded. 

No  traces  of  his  presence  in  Parma  after  1530  are  to  be  found 
in  any  documents,  whereas  there  are  many  which  attest  his  activity  in 
his  native  city.  On  November  30,  1530,  he  signed  a  deed  of  purchase, 
by  which  he  took  over  a  f;irm  from  one  Lucrezia  Pusterla,  of  Mantua, 
widow  of  Giovanni  Cattanio,  at  a  price  of  195  satdi,  10  so/di.^ 
In  the  autumn  of  1532,  and  in  the  first  months  of  1533,  he  acted 
as  witness  to  several  law  documents.  In  September  of  the  same  year 
he  bought  a  piece  of  land.-  Finally,  on  January  24,  1534,  he  witnessed 
the  marriage  settlement  of  Chiara  da  Correggio,  who  was  about  to 
become  the  wife  of  a  son  of  \'eronica  Gambara.^  No  doubt  he  was 
occasionally  absent  from  Correggio  in  the  intervals,  either  to  look  after 
his  interests  in  Parma,  or  to  visit  Modena,  for  which  city  he  was 
painting  the  altar-piece  of  St.  Peter  Martyr,  or  on  similar  errands.  All 
we  contend  is  that  Correggio  was  his  home  during  the  last  three  years 
of  his  life,  and  that  there  he  brought  his  young  children  to  place 
them  imder  the  care  of  their  grandparents.  He  had  now  many  ties 
there,    his    original    possessions    having    considerably    increased.      He 


Pungileoni,  ii.  p.  231. 

M.  A.  Mignnty,  p.  393. 

Pungileoni 

Pungileoni,  i.  p.  247  ;   ii 

■  p.  -^51- 

3o8  ANTONIO   DA    CORREGGIO 

found   solace    in    the    affectionate  friendship  of  the   ruling  family,   and 


more  especially  in    the   kindness  of  Veronica   Gambara,  and  it   seems 
more  than  probable  that  he  was  also  detained  by  some  premonition  of 


THE    SPANISH    ARMY   AT   CORREGGIO  309 

coming  disaster,  in  which  he  would  need  the  care  of  his  family,  anil 
the  benefit  of  his  native  air. 

Nearly  three  years  passed  away  thus,  during  which  he  spent  many 
quiet  and  happy  hours,  occupied  with  his  work  and  family  affairs.  The 
history  of  the  state,  meanwhile,  was  not  so  uneventful.  Indeed,  the 
vicissitudes  through  which  the  little  city  passed  in  this  short  space  of 
time  were  strangely  important  and  dramatic,  taking  into  account  the 
narrow  limits  of  the  stage. ^ 

In  May,  1531,  much  excitement  was  caused  in  the  Allegri  family 
by  the  strange  death  of  Paolo  Brunorio's  wife.  .She  had  been  living 
quietly  in  Modena  ;  her  husband  suddenly  brought  her  to  Correggio, 
and  there  abandoned  her,  retiring  himself  to  Roccabianca.  A  rapid 
and  mysterious  malady  attacked  the  poor  woman,  to  which  she  speedily 
succumbed.  This  event  had  a  certain  connection  with  the  hasty 
arrival  at  Correggio  of  Don  Pietro  Zappata,  imperial  governor  of 
Modena. 

A  calamity  of  a  more  general  nature  was  to  befall  the  city  a  few  days 
later.  On  June  27,  the  Spanish  army,  commanded  by  the  Marchese 
del  Vasto,  arrived  in  sight  of  Modena.  The  general  immediately 
announced  his  intention  of  quartering  his  troops  on  Correggio  and  the 
neighbouring  cities.  He  had  with  him  some  fifteen  thousand  soldiers, 
or  rather  brigands,  followed  by  some  two  thousand  women  of  the  lowest 
class.  All  Gian  Francesco  da  Correggio's  efforts  failed  to  avert  the 
threatened  danger,  and  the  majority  of  the  troops  with  their  leaders 
established  themselves  in  his  territory.  The  imperial  governor  made 
various  compacts  with  the  Marchese  del  Vasto  in  the  hope  of  saving 
the  district ;  but  very  soon  the  supply  of  wine  was  exhausted,  and 
the  bread  began  to  fail.  The  bakers  of  Modena  at  first  refused  to 
send  any  help  ;  after  a  time,  however,  they  yielded,  partly  to  promises 
and  partly  to  intimidation,  the  soldiers  threatening  to  descend  upon 
their  city.  As  to  lodging,  the  warm  weather  enabled  the  marauders 
to  camp  under  the  arcades  and  porticoes  of  Correggio.  The  chronicler 
describes  them  as  herding  together  under  these  shelters  "  like  cattle." 
They  were  determined,  however,  to  spend  their  time  as  merrily  as 
'   Lancellotti,  Cronaca,  iii.  pp.  246,  260,  362  ;  iv.  pp.  32,  38,  etc. 


3IO  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

might  be.  Sports  and  feasts,  and  savage  revelry  followed  in  quick 
succession,  to  the  exhaustion  of  the  city  and  its  dependencies. 

In  July,  a  terrible  and  unseemly  duel  was  fought  by  Ser  Gonzales 
de  Villena  de  Mandria  and  Ferdinando  de  Valle  de  Alba,  at  San 
Martino,  an  outlying  village  of  Correggio.  Curiosity  and  expectation 
were  so  widespread  before  the  event,  that  some  thousands  of  persons 
assembled  on  the  appointed  day,  many  of  them  coming  from  Modena 
and  Bologna.  Gonzales  was  the  victor,  and  was  carried  in  triumph 
among  the  soldiery,  followed  by  children  bearing  green  branches,  and 
an  applauding  crowd.  No  more  repulsive  mode  of  vanquishing  a  foe 
could  well  be  imagined.  He  overthrew  his  adversary  by  butting  at 
him  with  his  head,  and,  getting  him  on  the  ground,  bit  off  his  nose, 
and  filled  his  eyes  and  mouth  with  dust.  The  Marchese  del  Vasto 
was  present,  and  applauded  the  victor.  Fresh  orgies  followed  the 
announcement  of  the  birth  of  a  son  to  the  IMarchese,  to  the  further 
injury  of  the  exhausted  country  and  the  distraction  of  Veronica 
Gambara.  The  chronicler  notes  the  festivities  in  these  words  :  "  They 
feast  and  rejoice,  because  they  are  eating  our  substance  ;  if  it  were 
their  own,  they   would   not  make  such   great  banquets." 

Shortly  afterwards,  the  Marchese  del  Vasto  went  into  the  Neapol- 
itan territory  to  see  his  wife  and  his  heir.  The  soldiery,  throwing 
off  even  the  semblance  of  discipline  which  had  restrained  them  a  little 
in  his  presence,  began  to  sack  the  houses  in  the  city  and  villages. 
In  September  they  prepared  to  celebrate  the  return  of  their  captain 
with  another  duel.  Pirro  Colonna  and  the  Sforza,  who  were  to  take 
part  in  it,  arrived  at  Correggio.  A  multitude  assembled  from  all 
parts,  as  before.  But  the  Marchese's  return  was  delayed,  everything 
was  put  off,  and  the  combatants  departed. 

He  arrived  on  October  2,  and  remained  some  two  months  longer 
in  the  wretched  city.  On  November  23  he  departed,  amidst  general 
thanksgivings,  and  proceeded  to  Borgo  San  Donnino  v.ith  the  artillery, 
the  rest  cf  the  army  following  the  next  day. 

in  July,  1532,  Veronica's  Court  was  visited  by  Cardinal  de'  Medici, 
and  in  December  by  the  Emperor  Charles  V.^  The  cost  of  these 
'    Cfonaca,  above  quoted,  i\'.  pp.  3.S  and  125. 


MYTHOLOGICAL   WORKS  31, 

visitors  was  by  no  means  trilling;  but  they  were  more  cheerfully 
borne,  as  incurred  in  maintaining  the  dignity  of  the  state,  and  enter- 
taining those  who  came  "  with  friendly  faces." 

But  we  must  return  to  our  painter  and  his  works.  The  testimony 
of  Vasari,  who  perhaps  owed  his  information  to  Giulio  Romano,  and 
certain  letters  recently  published  by  Baghirolli,  tend  to  prove  that  in  his 
last  years  he  worked  almost  e.xclusively  for  Federigo  II.  (Gonzaga). 

Referring  to  certain  pictures  the  Duke  commissioned  Correggio  to 
paint,  "  to  send  to  the  Emperor,"  Vasari  confuses  the  facts  and  state- 
ments connected  with  three  works,  and  reduces  their  number  to  two. 

These  are  the  Aretine  biographer's  words:  "One  was  a  nude 
Lcda,  the  other  a  I'ciiiis,  the  carnations  so  mellow  in  colour,  and  so 
delicately  shaded,  that  they  seemed  to  be  the  flesh  itself,  rather  than 
paint.  In  one  there  was  a  marvellous  landscape  ;  never  was  Lombard 
who  excelled  him  in  such  things  ;  besides  this,  the  hair  was  so  beauti- 
ful in  colour,  and  so  elaborately  and  delicately  treated,  that  nothing 
better  could  be  beheld.  In  the  picture  were  also  some  Cupids,  trying 
their  arrows  on  a  touchstone,  to  see  which  were  gold  and  which  lead, 
all  very  skilfully  rendered  ;  and  a  further  charm  was  given  to  the 
rcnits  by  a  clear  and  limpid  stream  of  water,  flowing  among  stones 
and  bathing  her  feet."  ^ 

Vasari's  description  applies  partly  to  the  Lcda,  partly  to  the  lo  (he 
calls  her  Venus),  at  whose  feet  a  stream  of  water  flows  among  stones  ; 
it  also  contains  an  allusion  to  the  Daii'dc,  in  the  passage  which  refers  to 
the  Cupids  testing  their  arrows. 

There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  these  three  pictures  were 
painted  for  Gonzaga,  and  presented  by  him  to  Charles  V.  Vasari 
was  in  a  position  to  know  the  facts  ;  we  are  not  in  a  position  to  dis- 
pute them.  It  is  also  to  be  noted  that  we  first  hear  of  their  existence 
in  Spain. 

Lomazzo,  in  his  Trattato  dclP  arte  dclla  pittura^-  says  that  the  lo 

and  the  Dandc,  which  were   in   Milan   in  his  time,  in  the  possession  of 

the  sculptor,  Leone  Leoni,  had  been  sent  him  from  Spain  by  his  son 

Pompeo.      He  says  that  "  the  light  in  these  was  so  brilliant,  that  no 

1    Vite,  iv.  \>.  115.  -  1'.  212.      Milan,  1584. 


312  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

Other  painter  could  have  equalled  their  colour  and  illumination,"  and 
this  eulogy  he  repeated  in  verse,  exaggerating  it  a  little,  of  course.^ 

While  in  Spain,  Leone  Leoni  had  enjoyed  the  favour  and  patron- 
age of  Charles  V.  and  Philip  II.,  and  had  executed  several  works  for 
them  which  had  been  very  highly  praised.  His  son  Pompeo,  follow- 
ing his  father's  counsel  and  example,  settled  there.  He  in  his  turn 
was  patronised  by  Philip,  and  employed  in  various  important  under- 
takings. He  died  in  Spain  in  1610.-  Meyer  says  it  is  uncertain 
whether  he  received  the  two  pictures  as  a  gift  from  the  sovereign,  or 
bought  them  at  the  sale  of  the  Perez  collection,  as  Urlichs  supposed.^ 
The  question  is  not  of  much  interest,  and  moreover,  it  seems  to  us  to 
be  settled  by  the  dates.  Perez,  Secretary  of  State,  and  favourite  of 
Philip  II.,  fell  into  disgrace  in  1579.  Six  years  later,  that  is  to  say 
in  1585,  having  a  heavy  fine  to  pay,  he  resigned  himself  to  the  sale 
of  his  collection,  part  of  which  was  sequestrated  and  declared  forfeit 
to  the  Crown.  Now  Lomazzo's  work,  which  speaks  of  the  lo 
and  the  Danlie  as  in  Milan,  had  been  published  a  year  before  this  date, 
and  if  we  consider  how  long  it  took  in  those  days  to  transport  such 
things  as  pictures  from  Madrid  to  Italy,  and  further,  of  the  time  it 
must  have  taken  Lomazzo  to  write,  and  Paolo  Gottardo  Ponzio  to 
print  the  Trattato  dclla  pittiira,'^  it  will  be  evident  that  Pompeo  Leoni 
must  have  acquired  the  two  pictures  some  time  before  the  sale  of 
Perez'  collection.  The  more  probable  hypothesis  seems  therefore  to 
be  that  they  were  given  to  the  Italian  sculptor  by  Philip  II.,  in 
graceful  recognition  of  some  work  executed  by  the  former. 

In  1600,  Count  Khevcnhiller,  who  worked  most  energetically 
to  increase  the  collection  of  pictures  acquired  by  the  Emperor 
Rudolph   (a  passionate  lover  of  the  arts,  as  of  the  occult  sciences  of 

'  Rime,  p.  98.     Milan,  15S7. 

-  Vasari,  vii.  p.  535  et  seq.  Les  .ir/s  ita/ieiis  en  Espagne.  Rome,  1S25.  Two  studies 
on  Leoni  have  been  published  within  the  last  few  years,  one  by  Carlo  Casati  (Milan, 
1884)  and  another  by  Carlo  dell'  Acqua  {Arc/iiv.  storico  de/l'  ark,  ii.  p.  73).  The  latter 
shows  that  this  artist  was  a  native,  not  of  Arezzo,  but  of  Menaggio. 

^  Correggio,  p.  344  et  seq.  L.  Urlichs,  Beitriige  sur  Geschkhte  der  Kunstbeslrelningen 
und  Sammlungen  Kaiser  Jiudo/f's  II.  {Zeitschrift  fiir  bildetide  Kunst,  p.  83,  1870). 

■"  A  letter  by  D.  Satuio  de  Gebara,  published  at  the  beginning  of  the  Trattato, 
expressly  states  that  it  was  written  in   1582. 


WORKS  uoucirr  t'Or  rudolimi  it  313 

astrology  and  alchemy),  approached  Leoni  in  the  hope  of  obtaining 
the  two  pictures.  The  negotiation  was  somewhat  prolonged,  but  at 
last  a  bargain  was  struck,  and  they  were  removed  to  Prague.  Up  to 
this  point,  the  history  of  the  lo  and  of  the  Daiuic  is  identical  ;  but  their 
after  fortunes  differed,  as  we  shall  see. 

When  Khevenhiller  was  at  Madrid  as  Rudolph's  ambassador  in 
15S5,  he  cast  a  longing  eye  uj)on  two  works  in  the  Perez  collection, 
Cupid  forging  the  Boiv,  by  Parmigianino,  and  a  Gaiiyiiicdc,  which  at  the 
time  was  attributed  to  the  same  master.  When  (15S7)  his  sovereign 
authorised  the  purchase  of  these  pictures,  however,  they  had  been 
already  seized  by  the  Crown,  and  he  had  to  content  himself  with  certain 
copies.  One  of  these,  after  Correggio's  lo,  is  the  remarkable  work  now 
at  Berlin.  As  may  be  supposed,  he  was  not  content  with  this  modest 
speculation.  Partly  by  innjortunities,  partly  by  intrigue,  he  succeeded 
in  obtaining  the  coveted  pictures,  and  sent  them  off  to  Prague,  to- 
gether with  some  others,  among  them  the  Lcda,  the  King  first  ordering 
this  and  the  Ganymede  to  be  copied  by  the  Spanish  painter,  Eugenio 
Ca.xes. 

The  pictures  thus  brought  together  were  not  destined  to  remain 
very  long  in  Prague. 

In  the  Inventory  of  the  imperial  treasure  and  artistic'collections  of 
the  city,  compiled  in  162  i,  neither  the  lo  nor  the  Ganymede  is  men- 
tioned. Both  had  probably  passed  to  Vienna, where  we  find  them 
in  1702.  Apostolo  Zeno  seems  to  make  some  vague  allusion  to  their 
presence  there  in  1724,^  and  they  are  still  preserved  in  the  Belvedere. 

The  Dande,  the  Leda,  and  the  copy  of  the  lo,  which  had  remained 
in  Prague,  formed  part  of  the  booty  carried  off  by  the  Swedes  to  Stock- 
holm after  their  victory  in  1648. 

Meyer  has  already  disproved  the  old  story  of  the  discovery  of  the 
Danlie  and  the  Leda  in  a  stable,  where  they  were  used  to  fill  uj)  the 
windows,  by  Sebastian  Bourdon,  court  painter  to  Christina  of  Sweden 
in  1653-54.  He  endeavours  to  trace  their  further  history  in  certain 
allusions  made  by  Winckelmann,  and  in  some  letters  written  by  Count 
Tessin  to  Gustavus,  hereditary  Prince  of  Sweden."  It  is  certain,  at 
least,  that  both  pictures  were  at  Stockholm  in  the  middle  of  the 
'   Lt'ttcre,  ii.  \).  329.     Venice,  1752-  -  Coi-trgi;!^>,  I'-  350- 

S    S 


314  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

seventeenth  century.  The  inventory  of  Christina's  collections,  com- 
piled in  1652,  and  revised  in  1653,  is  preserved  in  the  Stockholm 
Library,  and  the  Dauiic  and  Lcda  are  inscribed  as  numbers  81  and  82. 
Their  subsequent  history  presents  no  difficulties.  The  eccentric 
Christina  carried  the  Dainic,  the  Lcda,  and  the  copy  of  the  lo  to 
Rome,  with  many  other  jDictures,  and  left  them  on  her  death  to  Cardinal 
Decio  Azzolini.  His  nephew,  Marchese  Pompeo,  sold  them  to  Don 
Livio  Odescalchi,  Duke  of  Bracciano,  from  whose  heirs  they  were 
bought  by  the  Regent  Orleans.^  The  narrow  bigotry  of  his  son 
Louis  condemned  them  as  obscene  ;  his  uneasy  scruples  were 
fostered  by  his  confessor,  the  Abbe  of  Ste.  Genevieve,  who  j^er- 
suaded  him  to  destroy  them.  A  knife  was  driven  through  that  flesh, 
to  which  a  supreme  art  had  given  the  very  semblance  of  life,  and 
the  fair  heads  of  Lcda  and  of  lo  were  severed  from  their  bodies. 

It  seems  almost  miraculous  that  they  should  have  escaped  entire 
destruction.  Charles  Coypel,  keeper  of  the  gallery,  saved  the  fragments, 
probably  from  burning.  He  either  carried  them  off  surreptitiously,  or 
obtained  them  from  the  Duke  by  prayers  and  protests.  It  is  asserted 
that  after  piecing  them  together  as  well  as  he  was  able,  he  begged 
first  Vanloo,  and  then  Boucher,  to  paint  in  new  heads,  and  upon  their 
refusal,  applied  to  a  certain  Delyen.  Another  version  declares  that 
he  filled  them  in  himself.  The  point  is  of  little  moment,  as  the  heads 
then  painted  no  longer  exist.  That  of /c)  was  repainted  by  Prudhon, 
and  that  of  Lcda  by  .Schlesinger. 

The  rest  of  the  story  may  be  briefly  told.  At  the  public  sale  of 
Coypel's  collections  in  1752,  they  were  bought  by  the  well-known 
amateur,  Pasquier.  On  his  death  shortly  afterwards,  they  were 
acquired  for  Frederick  the  Great  through  the  intermediary  of  the 
Comte  d'Epinailles.  In  1806  they  were  carried  off  to  Paris  by 
Napoleon,  but  were  restored  eight  years  later,  and  in  1830  they  were 
placed  in  the  Berlin  Gallery,  where  they  still  remain. - 

The  Damic,  which  had  escaped  the  ferocious  prudery  of  Louis  of 
Orleans,  passed  to  London  with  the  rest  of  the    family  collection,  and 

'   iMcngs,  ii.  ],.  146.     Tiraboschi,  p.  bz. 

-  Meyer,  p.  347.  IJode,  K.  Miisecn  zu  Berlin.  Badircibendes  Vcrzeicliniss  tier 
Gemdlde,  \i\i.  T,  4.     Ikrlin,  1S91. 


TO"    IN    THE    VIi:XX.\    CAl 


was  there  sold 
to  the  Duke  of 
Bridgewater. 
In  iSi6  it 
was  bought  by 
Henry  Hope 
for/ 1 83.  In 
1823  it  return- 
ed to  Paris, 
where  it  found 
another  pur- 
chaser, who 
finally  sold  it 
to  the  Prin- 
cess Borghesc. 
The  Princess 
took  it  to 
Rome,  and 
placed  it  in 
her  famous 
gall  e  r  y,  o  f 
which  it  now 
forms  one  of 
the  chief  orna- 
ments.^ 

Thus  re- 
duced to  a  brief 
narrative  of 
facts     gleaned 

'  f ;  i  o  V  a  n  11 1 
Morelli,  The  Eor- 
ghese  Gallery, 
Ifaliati  Paitikrs, 
ii.  p.  226.  Ad. 
Venturi,  Mnseo  r 
galleria  horghese, 
p.  94.  Rome,  1S93. 


3i6  ANTONIO    DA    CORRECGIO 

from  various  sources,  and  set  forth  collectively,  the  history  of 
Correggio's  mythological  pictures  no  longer  presents  the  apparent 
difficulties  and  contradictions  that  confront  us  in  the  biographies  which 
attempt  to  trace  the  career  of  each  work  separately. 

lo,  a  nymph  of  Thessaly,  and  priestess  of  Juno,  was  returning 
from  visiting  her  father.  Jupiter  saw  her,  and,  enamoured  of  her 
youth  and  beauty,  made  himself  known  to  her  as  lord  of  the  universe 
and  of  thunder,  and  declared  his  passion.  Alarmed  at  his  overtures, 
lo  fled  in  terror  across  the  plains  of  Arcadia;  but  Jove  pursued  and 
overtook  her,  enveloped  her  in  a  dense  mist,  and,  transforming  himself 
into  a  cloud,  or  rather  concealing  himself  in  one,  embraced  her.  It  is 
this  supreme  moment  of  the  drama  which  Correggio  has  rendered  with 
an  art  and  sentiment  of  extraordinary  force  and  novelty. 

Jo,  half  seated,  half  reclining  on  a  rising  knoll,  on  which  her  white 
drapery  is  disposed  with  studied  negligence,  is  seen  from  behind,  but 
her  head  with  its  languishing  eyes  is  thrown  back  voluptuously,  and 
her  mouth  offers  itself,  flower-like,  to  the  kiss  of  the  god,  whose  face  is 
dimly  discerned  through  the  gray  vapours.  Her  fair  hair  is  gathered 
into  a  knot  at  the  top  of  her  head,  showing  her  white  forehead.  The 
smooth  contours  of  her  exquisitely  moulded  form  seem  to  quiver.  Her 
right  foot  is  raised,  the  great  toe  outstretched,  the  others  bent  down- 
wards ;  the  left  foot,  which  rests  on  the  ground,  is  contracted.  Her 
right  hand  seems  to  close  tremblingly,  her  left  arm  is  laid  round  the 
cloud,  as  if  to  draw  it  to  her,  and  through  the  mist,  the  hand  of  the 
god  is  seen  appearing  from  beneath  her  arm.  The  foliage  of  a  few 
little  trees  pierces  the  delicate  mass  of  vapour  at  intervals.  Behind  lo, 
close  to  the  mound  on  which  she  is  seated,  is  a  great  amphora,  from 
beneath  which  a  stream  of  clear  water  flows  over  the  stones.  This  is 
perhaps  the  river  Inachus,  to  which  the  adventurous  nymph  owed  her 
being.  To  the  right,  a  hind  approaches  to  slake  her  thirst  at  the 
brook.  The  manner  in  which  the  artist  has  solved  the  problem  of 
showing  nearly  the  whole  of  lo's  figure,  and  yet  suggesting  the 
envelopment  of  her  form  by  the  cloud,  is  very  remarkable.  Her 
figure,  which  is  little  short  of  life-size,  fills  nearly  all  the  canvas.  The 
presence  of  the  god  is  indicated  only  by  the  dimly  seen  face  and  hand. 
Yet  in  this  mysterious  apparition,  and   in   the  slow   exhalations  of  the 


THE    -DAXAE"    IN    TIIK    r.ORC.HKSK    CAl.I.F.RV  317 

clouds  ihat  darken  the  sky,  all  the  vague  and  solemn  poetry  of  the 
old  myth  is  realised.^ 

The  Daiiiic,  now  in  the  Villa  I'orghese,  is  the  only  one  of  Cor- 
reggio's  mythological  pictures  remaining  in  Italy.  The  fair  daughter 
of  Acrisius,  a  delicately  virginal  figure,  turns  her  face  to  Cupid,  who, 
seated  on  her  couch,  draws  back  her  white  drapery,  that  the  golden 
rain  bv  which  Jove  makes  her  the  mother  of  Perseus  may  descend 
upon  her.  Below,  to  the  right,  two  beautiful  Amorini  are  intent  on 
sharpening  their  arrows,  a  quiver  full  of  which  lies  near  them.  A 
ruined  building  and  the  faint  outline  of  distant  hills  are  seen  through 
a  high  window. 

Danae  betrays  none  of  the  agitation  of  lo.  There  is  a  spirituality 
in  her  emotion,  and  a  classic  dignity  in  the  ingenuous  composure  of 
her  form  which  gives  her  a  charm  impossible  to  describe  in  words. 
The  execution  adds  not  a  little  to  the  fascination  of  this  picture.  The 
impasto  is  marvellous,  and  the  fusion  of  the  tints  so  perfect  that  "  they 
seem  not  to  have  been  laid  on  with  the  brush,  but  melted  together 
like  wax  in  the  fire."  The  values,  asserting  themselves  almost  in- 
sensibly in  the  chromatic  scale,  succeed  one  another  in  faultless 
harmony.  Approaching  the  picture  closely,  the  eye  is  hardly  conscious 
of  any  colour,  so  perfectly  are  the  anatomical  planes  concealed  in  the 
exquisite  torso,  which  rivals  that  of  the  Venus  of  Milo  herself.  They 
reveal  themselves,  however,  as  soon  as  the  spectator  looks  at  the 
picture  from  a  point  whence  he  commands  the  whole  composition. 
Then  the  nude  contours,  relieved  against  the  whiteness  of  the  linen 
by  touches  of  a  pale  golden  tone,  gradually  display  the  various  planes 
of  the  modelling.  Above  the  smiling  face  rises  a  mass  of  golden  hair, 
one  strand  of  which  falls  upon  her  shoulder.  This  perfect  beauty  of 
form  is  not  so  satisfactorily  sustained  in  the  arms  ;  the  right  is  over- 
muscular,  and  there  is  an  exaggeration  in  the  curve  of  the  left,  as  it 
detaches  itself  from  the  bust. 

Cupid  gazes  up  to  the  cloud,  from  which  the  golden  shower 
descends.  He  seems  to  be  adoring  the  god,  and  at  the  same  time 
persuading  the  Argive  maiden  to  receive  him   gladly,  and  to  account 

1  An  old  painter  converted  this  /.'  into  a  .S'/.v/zV/c  DitJjm,  which  was  attributed  to 
Correggio.     G.  D.  Sornique  engraved  it. 


THE    •■  GANYMEDE"    IN     THE    VIENNA    (■.ALLER^■  319 

In  Correggio's  version,  the  incident  is  not  conhncd  to  Led;i. 
The  nymphs  who  have  been  her  companions  in  the  l)ath  are  seen 
in  the  backgronnd,  si^orting  with  other  swans  who  pnrsue  tliem 
in  the  water.  Two  tiring-women,  completely  dressed,  appear  on  the 
bank.  One,  in  a  blue  robe,  leans  her  hands  on  the  mound,  and  gazes 
smilingly  at  the  scene.  The  other,  who  is  dressed  in  red,  is  about 
to  throw  a  white  drapery  over  a  nymph  who  emerges  from  the 
water.  The  strains  of  music  add  to  the  pleasures  of  the  hour. 
Cupid  has  laid  aside  his  (juiver  to  play  a  lyre,  and  two  piitti  in 
front  of  him  are  blowing  rude  horns,  one  seated  on  the  grcjund, 
the  other  erect,  in  an  attitude  of  infantine  self-importance  that 
provokes   a  smile. 

Even  in  its  present  state,  the  richness  of  the  composition,  the 
number  and  variety  of  the  figures,  and  the  beauty  of  the  landscape 
make  this  picture  the  most  remarkable  of  Correggio's  mythological 
subjects.  The  feminine  forms  have  the  grace  of  early  youth,  to- 
gether with  the  voluptuous  loveliness  of  full  development,  and  are 
distinguished  by  that  indescribable  spiritualisation  of  sensual  emotion 
in  the  rendering  of  which  Correggio  stands  alone. ^  The  last  mytho- 
logical picture  with  which  we  have  to  deal  is  the  GaiiyDtcdc,  a  work 
which  presents  some  curious  features. 

There  was  a  time  when  it  was  not  ascribed  to  Correggio  ;  Par- 
migianino  was  its  reputed  author  when  it  passed  from  Madrid  to 
Prague.  The  first  writer  who  spoke  of  a  Gauyiiicdc  by  Correggio 
was  Ottonelli,  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century.  Un- 
fortunately, he  gives  no  description  of  the  picture,  nor  does  he  allude 
in  any  way  to  its  owner,  or  domicile.-  Strange  to  say,  however,  this 
Ganymede  is  an  exact  reproduction  of  a  youthful  angel  in  the  dome 
of  Parma  Cathedral,  the  one  in  the  pendentive  immediately  below 
St.  Bernard.  This  fact,  which,  as  far  as  we  know,  has  never  been 
pointed  out  before,  is  an  abnormal  one  in  the  history  of  Correggio's 
(Ciivrc.  We  are  bound  to  admit  that  the  e.xact  reproduction  of  this 
figure  under  the  altered  conditions  is  directly  opposed  both  to  good  sense 

1  Antonio  Coppi  wrote  a  study  on  the  Rospigliosi  Leda,  which  was  for  a  long  time 
ascribed  to  Correggio.  See  liis  No/hic  di  iiii  qiiadro  del  Correggio  {Dissertnzioni  delta 
Accad.  Roinana  di  Arclteologia),  xiii.  jiji.  129-140.      Rome,  1S21. 

-  Tml/a/o  dcl/a pitfiira,  p.  155. 


ANTONIO    DA    CORRECIGIO 


and  good  taste.  Many  traits  which  are  perfectly  logical  in  the  angel, 
cease  to  have  any  fitness  when  adapted  to  the  Ganymede.  Thus,  to 
avoid  any  alteration  in  the  curve  of  the  arm,  and  to  evade  the  necessity 
of  showing  the  right  hand,  we  have  a  Ganymede  who  has  not  been 
seized  and  carried  off  by  the  eagle,  but  who  clings  to  the  bird,  and  soars 

upwards  with 
all  the  serenity 
of  a  practised 
aeronaut.  The 
eagle  certainly 
grasps  him  in 
his  talons,  but 
only  by  the 
clothes,  an 
action  which 
would  natur- 
ally     have 


drawn  them 
tightly  round 
his  body  under 
the  arms.  No 
such  strain, 
however,  is  to 
be  observed. 
T  he  hi  g  h 
lights  are  dis- 
tributed in  a 
precisely  simi- 
hir  fashion 
over  the 
bodies  of  the 
angel  and  of  the  Ganymede.  Yet  it  is  evident  that  the  Ganymede's 
left  arm  is  partly  in  the  sliadow  of  the  eagle's  head  and  neck,  whereas 
the  light  strikes  full  on  thai  of  the  angel.  A  more  oln'ious  absurdity  is 
apparent  in  the  arrangement  of  the  draperv.  In  tlu'  downward  flight 
of   the  angel,   his  garment    naturally   flutters  behind    him,    sweeping 


STIDY     FOB    THE    CA 

Jii  the  Weimar  Mu 


"VICE"    AND    •' VIRTUE"  321 

upwards.  The  same  lines  are  preserved  in  the  drapery  of  the 
Ganymede,  In  direct  contradiction  to  his  supposed  ascent  through  the 
air.  The  physical  laws  of  aerial  motion  could  not  have  escaped 
Correggio,  who  in  every  other  case  has  noted  them  with  the  utmost 
precision.  If  in  addition  to  all  this  we  remember  the  old  attribution  of 
the  picture  to  Parmigianino,  which  Meyer  noted  when  he  ranked  it 
as  among  the  least  important  of  Correggio's  works,  we  may  be  per- 
mitted to  confess  our  doubts  as  to  its  originality.  In  the  Weimar 
Museum  there  is  a  pen  drawing  in  bistre,  agreeing  in  all  respects  wi.th 
the  picture,  save  that  the  group  is  reversed,  and  if  this  is  to  be  accepted 
as  the  study  preliminary,  we  have  an  additional  argument  against 
the  authenticity  of  the  work,  for  the  drawing  is  certainly  not  by 
Correggio.  We  are  loth  to  pronounce  with  the  same  confidence 
against  the  picture,  taking  into  account  its  many  fine  qualities. 

The  eagle  who  soars  towards  Olympus,  gently  licking  the  arm  of 
the  beautiful  son  of  Tros,  the  slender  grace  of  the  Phrygian  youth, 
the  novel  charm  of  the  landscape,  the  white  dog  "  who  seems  to 
strain  after  his  master,  as  if  eager  to  follow  his  flight,"  ^  make  up  a 
conception  at  once  bold,  expressive,  and  pleasing.  The  colour,  too, 
is  glowing  and  transparent. 

All  this,  however,  will  not  suffice  to  remove  the  doubt  suggested 
by  the  peculiarities  we  have  noted.  We  think  it  highly  probable  that 
one  of  Correggio's  more  skilful  pupils  or  Imitators  may  have  conceived 
the  notion  of  transforming  the  angel  of  the  cupola  Into  a  Ganymede. 

But  why,  it  may  be  asked,  should  not  the  idea  have  occurred  to 
the  master  himself?  Because  a  painter  like  Correggio  would  not  have 
slavishly  repeated  himself,  when  art  and  common  sense  alike  demanded 
a  modification  of  his  theme. 

In  the  face  of  the  opinion  expressed  by  so  many  critics,  however,  we 
will  not  venture  on  a  dogmatic  pronouncement,  In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the 
work  was  formerly  ascribed  to  Parmigianino.  It  7;^^  be  by  Correggio; 
but  we  are  by  no  means  convinced  that  It  is  not  rather  an  adaptation  of 
the  angel  In  the  cupola  by  a  clever  pupil,  such  as  Michelangelo  Anselml.- 

1  Mengs,  ii.  p.  150. 

"  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  many  pictures  by  Parmigianino,  Rondani,  and  in 
particular  by  Ansclmi,  were  formerly  ascribed  to  Correggio,  and  are  occasionally  still 

T    T 


322 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


Among  the  latest  of  the  works  undoubtedly  by  Correggio's  hand 
are  the  two  canvases  painted  in  tempera,  in  the  Louvre.  The  types 
are   peculiarly    attractive,   and    the  figures  are  remarkable   for   their 

easy  and   vigorous 
action. 

They  were  ori- 
ginally included  in 
Isabella  d'Este's 
collection,  and  are 
thus  loosely  de- 
scribed in  a  notice 
written  about  the 
middle  of  the  si.x- 
teenth  century  : 
"  Two  pictures  by 
the  late  Antonio  da 
Correggio,  in  one 
of  which  is  painted 
the  story  of  Apollo 
and  Marsyas  {s?c), 
In  the  other  the 
three  Virtues,  Jus- 
tice, Temperance, 
and  Fortitude,  in- 
structing a  child 
so  to  spend  its  time 
that  it  may  receive 
from  them  the 
crown  and  palm."^ 

V,CE,    AN     ALLE,.OKV,    BV    COKKEGG.O.  J^|]^^       j|^^       AllHope, 

111  the  Louvre. 

they  passed  mto 
the  possession  of  Charles  I.  of  England  in  1628,  and  afterwards 
into  that  of  the  Parisian  banker,  Jabach.  The  Virtue  was  after- 
so  ascribed.  I  had  already  written  tlie  above  observations  on  the  Gatiymede  when  Dr. 
Hugo  von  Tschudi  introduced  me  to  his  study,  Correggio's  mythologische  Darstdlungen, 
jniblished  in  the  GrapJiischen  Kiiiisten.  Vienna,  1880. 
'  Carlo  d'Arco,  op.  cit.  ii.  p.  134.     Meyer,  p.  354. 


VIRTUE,'    AN    ALLFX;OR^• 


The 


wards  acquired  by  Cardinal  Mazarin,  and  finally  by  Louis  XIV 
Vice  was  sold  to  the  French  King  by  Jabach  himself  in  167 1. 

J^icc  is  seated  at  the  foot  of  a  group  of  trees,  and  struggles  to  free 
himself  from  the 
cords  which  bind 
him  to  the  trunks. 
Three  women,  their 
hair  entwined  with 
serpents,  stand 
about  him.  One  of 
them  presents  him 
with  some  vipers, 
which  rear  their 
crests  at  him  from 
her  hand  ;  the 
second  deafens  him 
with  the  sound  of 
a  pipe,  which  she 
blows  loudly  close 
by  him  ;  the  third 
binds  his  feet. 
Mengs  e.xplains  the 
first  figure  to  be 
Conscience,  who 
stings  him,  the 
third.  Habit,  who 
enslaves  him,  the 
second,  Pleasure, 
who  flatters  his 
senses  with  melody. 
It  is  certain,  how- 
ever, that  none  of  the  three  produces  such  keen  discomfort  in  the 
sufferer  as  the  Pleasure,  with  her  ear-piercing  notes  !  She  is,  more 
probably,  the  representative  of  Conscience,  tormenting  him  with  her 
keen  and  sibilant  reproof  ;  the  bearer  of  the  vipers  may  be  Passion, 
and  the  third  figure  Habil  or  Custom,  as  suggested.    Below  is  seen  the 


324  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

half-length  figure  of  a  lively  little  satyr,  with  a  bunch  of  grapes  in 
his  hand.  Three  feminine  figures  also  surround  rir/iic,  a  beautiful 
woman,  who  is  seated,  clad  in  armour,  and  trampling  on  a  dragon. 
Glory,  a  winged  figure,  hovers  over  her,  about  to  crown  her  with 
laurel.  On  one  side  of  her  is  seated  a  woman,  who  represents  earthly 
and  heavenly  knowledge  ;  she  points  upwards  with  her  left  hand,  and 
with  her  right  revolves  a  compass  on  a  globe.  A  little  genius 
attends  her.  A  noble  and  commanding  figure  on  the  other 
side,  with  a  serpent  entwined  in  her  hair,  and  a  bit,  a  sword, 
and  a  lion's  skin,  represents  the  four  cardinal  virtues.  Prudence, 
Justice,  Fortitude,  and  Temperance.  Above,  in  an  aureole  of  light, 
three  genii  wing  their  flight,  singing  and  playing.  In  the  background 
is  a  wall,  overgrown  with  foliage,  and  beyond  it  stretches  a  wide 
valley. 

There  is  an  unfinished  picture  of  the  same  subject,  also  in  tempera, 
in  the  Doria-Pamfili  Gallery  at  Rome.  The  lower  part  is  fairly  ad- 
vanced, and  the  colours  are  laid  in  ;  but  the  three  genii  above  are 
barely  indicated.  Its  authenticity  was  never  questioned  till  within  the 
last  {&\s  years.  It  was  accepted  as  a  replica  by  Correggio  by  students 
such  as  Mengs  and  Miindler,  and  by  Meyer,  who  pronounces  it 
"  unquestionably  an  original  work." 

Morelli,  however,  fell  foul  of  this  peaceful  unanimity,  and  raised  a 
hornets'  nest  of  doubts  and  suspicions.  He  thought  the  canvas  had 
a  very  modern  appearance ;  he  condemned  the  draperies  as  heavy  and 
clumsy,  the  hair  as  coarsely  treated,  the  attendant  genius  of  Virtue  as 
affected  and  ugly,  the  colour  as  opaque,  and  in  parts  hard  and 
metallic.  He  further  suggested  that  the  picture  might  be  one  of  those 
copies  of  the  gems  of  Jabach's  collection  which  the  banker  himself  had 
painted,  as  Mariette  tells  us,  by  Jean  Baptiste  and  Michael  Corneille, 
Pesne,  Masse,  and  Rousseau.^ 

Of  the  various  other  allegorical  and  mythological  works  ascribed  to 
Correggio  we  think  it  unnecessary  to  speak.  The  time  for  their 
profitable  discussion  has  either  passed   by,  or  is   not  yet  come.- 

1  P.  J.  Mariette,  Abecedario publie par  Ph.  Chenneviferes  et  A.  de  Montaiglon.  Paris 
1854-56.     (;.  Morelli,  The  Doria-Pamfili  Gallery  {Italian  Painters),  i.  pp.  312-14. 

"  A  Venus  stringing  the  Bow  for  Cupid  and  a  Charity  were  formerly  ascribed  to  him. 
Puiigileoni  (ii.  p.  117)  further  speaks  of  a  Circe.     The  brothers  Minghetti,  of  Bologna 


THE    MISSING    CARTOONS  325 

It  seems  certain  that  during  the  last  months  of  his  life,  the 
painter  was  engaged  on  some  drawings  for  Gonzaga,  illustrating 
the  LiJvcs  of  Jupiter,  which  may  have,  been  cartoons  for  tapestry.  On 
the  death  of  Correggio,  Federigo  vainly  importuned  Alessandro  Caccia, 
Governor  of  Parma,  either  to  let  him  take  [)Osscssion  of  the  cartoons, 
or  recover  the  fifty  ducats  he  had  paid  for  them  from  tlie  painter's 
heirs. 

The  Duke's  first  letter  (September  12,  1534)  begins  with  the 
statement  :  "  Master  Antonio  of  Correggio,  painter,  was  at  work  on 
many  things  for  me,"  and  this  confirms  the  testimony  of  Yasari,  who 
says  that  the  mythological  pictures  already  described  were  painted  for 
Gonzaga.  He  goes  on  to  insist  that  the  works  in  question  should  be 
sought  for,  seized,  and  sent  to  him.  "  They  are  mine,"  he  exclaims, 
"  and  no  one  else  has   any  right    to   them  !  " 

Five  days  later  Caccia  replies  that  all  his  eftbrts  to  trace  the 
missing  works  have  been  vain,  and  that  it  would  be  best  to  inquire  at 
Correggio,  whither  the  painter  himself,  or  his  children,  had  taken  all 
his  possessions,  with  the  exception  of  two  chests,  in  which  nothing  had 
been  found.  The  Duke  returned  to  the  charge  a  month  later, 
soliciting  Caccia  to  inquire  at  the  house  of  Scipione  Montino  della 
Rosa  :  "  having  heard  that  they  are  in  his  hands."  The  governor 
answered  that  they  were  certainly  not  in  Scipione's  possession,  that  he 
had  sought  them  first  of  all  at  his  house,  and  that  IMontino  had 
declared  he  knew  nothing  of  them.^ 

Caccia,  no  doubt,  had  demanded  them  of  the  very  person  who 
probably  had  them,  thus  giving  him  notice  of  the  quest,  and  enabling 
him  to  conceal  them  ! 

Federigo  Gonzaga  never  obtained  his  cartoons,  nor  is  it  very  likely 
that  he  recovered  his  money. 

(china  manufacturers),  have  a  fine  picture  of  Narcissus  and  Echo,  which  some  persons 
suppose  to  be  by  Correggio. 

1  \V.  BaghirolH,  Dei  rapporti  di  Federigo  Gonzaga  con  A.  A.  da  Correggio  {Giornale 
d'erudizione  artistica,  \.  p.  329  et  seq.     Perugia,  1872). 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE    DEATH    OF   CORREGGIO 


THE    PAlNTEl' 
CHARACTER— 


-SUPPOSED    PORTRAITS    OF    CORREGGIO  — HIS    DISPOSITION    AND 
B— MONUMENTS    TO    HIS    MEMORY — THE    HISTORY    OF    A    SKULL 


THE  deed  by  which  the 
Franciscans  commissioned 
Correggio  to  paint  his  first 
great  altar-piece  in  15  14  was  ex- 
ecuted in  the  artist's  bedroom, 
on  the  ground  floor  of  his  own 
humble  dwelling. 

With  the  first  breath  of  spring, 
on  March  5,  1534,  Correggio 
passed  away  among  his  own 
people  in  that  same  house,  per- 
haps in  that  same  little  room, 
where  the  first  vision  of  art  had 
dawned  upon  him.  He  was 
barely  forty  years  old,  and  had 
been  a  widower  for  five  years. 


DEATH    OF   CORREGCilO  327 

On  the  following  clay,  a  l-'riday,  mass  was  said  for  the  rei)Ose  of  his 
soul.  He  was  then  laid  in  his  tomb.  His  father^  caused  another  mass 
to  be  said  a  year  afterwards. - 

His  illness  cannot  have  been  a  long  one.  We  have  seen  that  he 
acted  as  witness  to  the  marriage  settlement  of  Chiara  da  Correggio 
little  more  than  a  month  before  his  death,  and  that  on  June  15 
following,  his  father  refunded  the  twenty-five  gold  siiufi  paitl  him  by 
Messer  Alberto  Panciroli  of  Reggio  on  account  for  the  altar-piece  he 
did  not  live  to  paint. 

Vasari  repeats  a  curious  tradition  connected  with  his  death  : 
"  Having  received  a  payment  of  si.xty  sciidi  in  copper  at  Parma,  he 
wished  to  take  the  money  back  with  him  to  Correggio  for  a  certain 
purpose,  and  he  accordingly  started  to  walk  home,  loaded  therewith  ; 
the  heat  being  very  great,  he  was  much  overcome,  and  drinking 
water  to  refresh  himself,  he  took  to  his  bed  with  a  great  fever,  and 
never  raised  his  head  again."  ^ 

This  is  obviously  a  fable.  Correggio's  work  in  Parma  had  been 
finished  and  paid  for  some  years  before  ;  and  he  was  certainly  not  so 
poverty-stricken  as  to  have  been  compelled  to  make  the  long  journey 
between  Parma  and  Correggio  (a  distance  of  over  forty  kilometres)  on 
foot.  We  know  from  various  documents,  too,  that  he  had  returned  to 
his  native  city  some  time  before.  But  the  most  ridiculous  part  of  the 
story  is  that  which   says  that  his  illness  was  caused  by  the  heat  of  the 

1  Pellegrino  Allegri  died  on  March  i,  1542,  his  wife  Bernardina  three  years  later. 

2  In  the  register,  or  account-book,  of  the  sacristy  of  San  Francesco  at  Correggio,  the 
following  entry  occurs  :  "  In  the  year  1534  of  the  month  of  March,  on  the  6th  day,  which 
was  a  Friday,  the  funeral  office  was  performed  by  Padre  Fra  Pedre,  L.—  :  9  :  —  :  on  the 
same  day,  for  the  interment  of  Master  Antonio  de  Alegri,  painter,  L.—  :  soldi  13  :  den.  8  ; 
on  the  9th  day,  which  was  a  Monday,  the  mass  of  the  seventh  day  was  said  for  Master 
Anto  de  Alegri,  painter,  L—  ;  sold.  13  :  den.  8  ;  on  the  loth  day,  which  was  a  Tuesday, 
the  mass  of  the  thirtieth  day  was  said  for  the  above:  Lire  — :  soldi  13  :  den.  8."  In 
the  year  1535,  on  the  8th  day  of  March,  which  was  a  Monday,  a  mass  was  said  by  desire 
of  Doman,  called  Allegro  ;  on  the  9th  day,  which  was  a  Tuesday,  a  mass  was  said  for 
the  above."  In  Antonioli's  transcription,  published  by  Magnanini  (p.  81),  the  mass  of 
the  octave  mentioned  by  ^Tiraboschi  (vi.  298)  and  Pungileoni  (ii.  p.  251)-  's  omitted. 
The  latter  further  extracts  the  following  from  the  account-book  of  the  Confraternity  of 
San  Sebastiano  ;  "  Zan  Antonio  Massaro,  for  the  death  of  Master  Antonio  de  n<?»,an, 
an  iu/io  and  a  candle,  L.— ;  8  :— 4."  It  has  been  stated  elsewhere  that  Dcviian  was 
the  sobriquet  of  Correggio's  father.  ^   ^^'^'■''  '^'-  P-  "9- 


338  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

sun.  Unhappily,  winter  still  reigns  in  the  valley  of  the  Po  through- 
out the  month  of  February.  Its  waters  are  ice-bound,  and  its  cold 
winds  sweep  over  a  snow-covered  country  ! 

We  have  no  authentic  record,  either  literary  or  artistic,  of  Correggio's 
personal  appearance.  As  far  as  we  know,  no  old  writer  described  him, 
no  painter  nor  sculptor  of  his  time  left  a  portrait  of  him.  There  are 
several  portraits  extant  which  claim  to  have  been  made  "  after  his 
image  and  likeness,"  but  not  a  trace  of  evidence  can  be  brought  forward 
in  support  of  their  authenticity.  On  the  other  hand,  we  have  Vasari's 
testimony,  which  is  of  great  weight  in  this  case.  "  I  have,"  he  says, 
"  most  diligently  sought  to  obtain  a  portrait  of  him,  but  he  never 
painted  it  himself,  nor  was  he  ever  painted  by  others,  for  he  always 
lived  very  modestly,  and  I  have  been  unable  to  find  one."  ^ 

After  this,  it  would  be  idle  to  linger  over  the  various  reputed 
portraits  of  the  master,  painted  and  engraved.  The  reader  who  cares 
to  know  more  of  these  is  referred  to  Ratti,-  Lanzi,^  Pungileoni,*  and 
Meyer/'  who,  among  them,  give  an  e.xhaustive  account  of  the 
subject. 

We  may  remark,  however,  that  two  types  predominate  in  these 
supposed  likenesses.  One  is  derived  from  a  panel  attributed  to 
Dosso  Dossi  ;  the  other,  from  a  figure  frescoed  by  Lattanzio  Gambara 
in  Parma  Cathedral. 

The  first,  which  is  the  one  usually  accepted  by  modern  writers, 
represents  a  young  man  with  a  long  fair  beard,  in  a  round  cap.  It  was 
first  reproduced  by  Ratti  in  his  Notizic  ;  he  writes  of  it  as  follows  : 
"  The  frontispiece  of  my  book  was  copied  from  a  portrait  which  I 
myself  have  had  in  my  hands,  painted  upon  a  panel  of  walnut  wood, 
with  much  intelligence  and  precision.  It  was  bought  at  Geneva  by  an 
English  gentleman  for  eight  zecchini,  and  on  the  reverse  was  this 
inscription,  written  apparently  when  the  picture  was  painted  :  Portrait 
of  Master  Antonio  Correggio  by  the  hand  of  Dosso  Dossi.  I  have 
always  kept  the  copy,  not  liaving  been  able  to  procure  the  original." 

Storia  pittoiiici,  ii.  p.  305. 


Ot.  at.  iv. 

p.  i.S. 

2   Op.dt.i>.T2. 

Op.  cit.  i.  1 

).  254  ct  scj  ; 

ii.  p]).  141,  254  li  scj. 

Corn-ss^io, 

p.  25  d  SC,J.\ 

p.  453  '■''  ^'Y- 

PORTRAITS   OF   CORKEGGIO  329 

It  is  not  known  whether  the  copy  in  Ratti's  possession  was  the  one 
painted  by  Mengs.i  Ikit  the  inscription  is  of  very  small  historic 
value.  It  bears  a  suspicious  likeness  to  many  others  of  comparatively 
modern  manufacture,  with  which  the  owners  of  pictures  have  sought  to 
increase  their  value. 

Another  series  of  portraits  owes  its  origin,  as  we  have  said,  to  a 
fresco  by  Gambara.  To  the  right  of  the  main  entrance  in  I'cU'ma 
Cathedral  he  painted  a  slightly  bald  man,  with  a  dark  beard,  an 
aquiline  nose,  and  a  high  forehead.  Now  Lattanzio  was  not  born 
till  after  the  death  of  Correggio,  and  did  not  paint  in  the  cathedral 
till  some  thirty  years  later  (1568-1573).  But  setting  this  f<ict  aside, 
how  are  we  to  reconcile  the  appearance  of  this  wrinkled,  elderly  man, 
who  looks  at  least  sixty,  with  that  of  the  painter,  who  died  at  the  early 
age  of  forty  ?  -  The  story  must  have  been  invented  by  some  imagina- 
tive sacristan,  for  the  delectation  of  foreigners  from  whom  he  expected 
a  douceur. 

Nevertheless,  credulous  persons  have  gravely  reproduced  the  por- 
trait as  that  of  the  artist.  The  spare,  bent,  bald  old  man  who  figures 
as  Correggio  in  some  editions  of  Vasari,  is  merely  an  exaggerated 
version  of  the  unknown  painted  by  Gambara.  Lanzi  declares  this 
print  to  have  been  derived  from  a  collection  of  drawings  belonging 
to  Padre  Resta,  known  as  the  Gallcria  porlaiilc  ;  but  allowing 
this,  it  may  still   have  owed   its  origin   to  the  fresco. 

In  addition  to  these  two  generally  received  versions,  or,  as  we  may 
call  them,  these  two  contagious  sources  of  error,  we  have  what  may  be 
called  the  sporadic  cases,  fancy  portraits  by  various  painters,  some  of 
them  of  our  own  times,  who  have  either  evolved  a  Correggio  from 
their  inner  consciousness,  or  have  discovered  him  in  the  unknown  face 
that  looks  out  upon  them  from  some  smoky  canvas. 

Among  the  sporadic  specimens,  we  class  the  portrait  in  the 
Bolognese  edition  of  Vasari,  the  first  instalment  of  which  appeared 
in  164S  ;  the  portrait  formerly  in  the  Palazzo  del  Giardino  at  Parma, 
described  as  that  of  a  black-bearded  man  in  a  black  dress  and  pointed 

'   Open-,  ii.  p.  300,  note  by  ti.  N.  d'Azara. 
-  Tiraboschi,  pi).  272,  301,  302. 


330  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

collar,'  the  portrait  published  by  Isaac  Bullart  in  16S2,-  the  portrait 
in  the  Gallery  of  Tours,  claiming  to  be  by  no  less  a  person 
than  Tintoretto,  which  came  from  an  abbey  in  Touraine,^  and  a 
hundred  others,  ending  with  Agostino  Marchesi's  beautiful  engraving 
of  1855. 

To  all  these  legendary  and  imaginary  portraits  we  must  add  those 
which  owe  their  designation  to  some  mistake  or  confusion.  Meyer 
has  already  suggested  that  the  Antonio  da  Conrggio  ascribed  to  Dosso 
may  have  been  a  portrait  of  Bernieri  ;  D'Azara  tells  us  he  saw  a  portrait 
at  Turin,  in  the  Vigiia  dclla  Rcgina,  inscribed  Antonio  Allcgri  da 
Conrggio,  whereas  Lanzi  says  it  bore  the  forged  inscription  Antoniits 
Corriggiiis.^  This  portrait,  which  was,  as  a  fact,  in  the  palace  of  the 
King  of  Sardinia,  near  Turin,  generally  known  as  the  Vigna  della 
Regina,  came  from  the  Marchese  di  INIonferrato's  collection,  and 
claimed  to  be  a  copy  from  an  authentic  original  at  Parma  !  Antonioli, 
however,  who  had  a  copy  of  it  from  Tiraboschi,''  pronounced  it 
to  be  a  portrait,  not  of  the  painter,  but  of  one  Antonio  da  Correggio, 
rector  of  San  Martino,"  in  which  case  (for  it  was  reproduced  several 
times,  once  in  the  second  Sienese  edition  of  Vasari)  we  have  a  worthy 
parish  priest  figuring  as  a  great  artist.  Nor  is  this  all.  A  modern 
biographer  has  endeavoured  to  combine  with  this  legend  of  the  portrait, 
another,  of  a  servant  who  is  supposed  to  have  succeeded  Correggio's 
wife  as  his  model  about  i  530,  and  who,  after  the  death  of  the  painter 
and  his  parents,  is  said  to  have  returned  to  her  native  place,  carrying 
with  her  the  portrait,  which  eventually  passed  into  the  Vigna  dclla 
Regina  I  ' 

We  will    refrain   from    submitting   an  assortment   of  these    various 

'  G.  Campori,  CatalogJii  ed  inroitari,  p.  270. 

2  Academic  des  scietices  et  dcs  aiis,  contcnant  Ics  vies  et  les  cloges  /lis/oriqiies  des  Iiommes 
illustres.     Paris,  1862. 

3  MS.  Minutes  of  t lie  Auadciiiiu  di  belle  arti  of  Panna,  vii.  pp.  16,  25,  35,  36. 
*  Mengs,  Opere,  ii.  ji.  200.      L.inzi,  op.  cit. 

'  VI.  p.  301.  '■■  McyL-r,  pp.  25-26. 

'  Magnanini,  p.  116.  'J'liis  rom.incu  was  built  upon  the  mere  fact  that  in  liis  will 
of  November  19,  153S,  Pellegrino  .Mlugri  left  twenty  gold  scudi  to  his  servant 
Margherita  di  Jacopo  di  Arimondo  of  Villa  Sala  in  the  district  of  Turin,  pro  beneiitei-entiis 
et  servitiis. 


CHARACTER    OF   CORRICCCK)  33, 

portraits  of  Correggio  to  our  readers,  though  the  infinite  variety  of 
types  might  afford  th(;m  some  amusement.  As  a  matter  of  fact  there 
is  barely  one  to  which  even  a  vestige  of  authenticity  attaclies,  and  we 
prefer  therefore  to  omit  from  our  pages  even  the  one;  which  has  hitherto 
been  generally  accepted. 

Though  scarcely  more  than  a  sketch,  this  supposed  portrait  is  un- 
doubtedly of  the  school  of  Correggio.  The  brushing  and  the  tones  of 
the  colour  recall  Girolamo  Bedoli.  It  is  of  the  same  size  as  another, 
of  Parmigianino,  which  has  a  similar  frame.  Both  were  originally  in 
the  Rossi  collection,  acquired  by  the  Parma  Gallery  in  1S51.  In  the 
old  catalogues  it  figures  as  :  "  Supposed  portrait  of  Correggio."  '  It 
is  probably  a  hasty  sketch  of  some  one  or  other,  but  it  is  thoroughly 
artistic  as  a  picture,    and  full  of  animation  and  intelligence. 

With  regard  to  our  painter's  moral  character,  we  have  nothing  to 
guide  us  but  the  words  of  Vasari,  on  which  all  other  biographers  have 
drawn  :  "  He  was  of  a  very  timid  disposition,  and  exerted  himself  to 
excess  in  the  practice  of  his  art  for  the  sake  of  his  family,  who  were  a 
great  care  to  him  ;  and  although  by  nature  good  and  well-disposed,  h(' 
nevertheless  grieved  more  than  was  reasonable  under  the  burden  of 
those  passions  which  are  common  to  all  men.  He  was  very  melancholic 
in  the  exercise  of  his  art,  and  felt  its  fatigues  greatly."  And  again  : 
"  Oppressed  by  family  cares,  Antonio  was  so  bent  on  saving  that  he 
became  miserly  to  a  degree."  - 

Vasari  evidently  exaggerates.  But  we  do  not  think  with  Meyer" 
and  Morelli,^  that  he  romanced  merely  for  the  sake  of  filling  out  his 
biographies,  or  making  them  interesting.  D'Azara  very  unjustly  calls 
that  of  Correggio  "  unworthy."  '' 

It  has  been  the  fate  of  Vasari's  work  to  be  at  once  the  best  abused 
of  books,  and  the  one  to  which  its  critics  are  most  deeply  indebted. 
Some  attack  him  for  his  inaccuracies  in  the  matter  of  dates  and  facts  ; 
some  accuse  him  of  partiality  because  of  the  praise  he  bestows  on 
Tuscan  artists  ;  some  declare  that  he  invented  episodes  and  anecdotes 

1  Archives  of  the  Parma  Gallery,  C.  ii.  '-    ViU,  iv.  pp.  no,  119. 

3   Correggio,  pp.  14,  28.  ■*  /<•  open-  dci  maestri  italiani,  p.  21. 

-'  Mengs,  Opere,  i.  \>.  xcvii. 


332  ANTONIO   DA    CORREGGIO 

to  make  his  book  amusing  ;  others  are  indignant  with  him  for  omitting 
to  mention  some  local  celebrity  ;  and  others  again  pronounce  him  as 
poor  a  critic  as  he  was  a  painter ! 

Unfortunate  Giorgetio  Vasellario,  Arctinc  painter !  ^?,  Benvenuto 
Cellini  calls  thee !  How  is  it  that  under  this  perpetual  shower  of 
stones  the  life  is  not  crushed  out  of  thee  ? 

The  vcritt'  vraic  in  this  matter  seems  to  be  that  half  the  reproaches 
heaped  upon  the  author  are  unjust  and  disingenuous. 

He  is  accused  of  being  confused  and  inaccurate,  more  especially  in 
his  history  of  the  revival  of  art  in  its  first  manifestations.  But  access 
to  the  documents  preserved  in  the  archives  was  denied  him,  and  all  art 
records  then  extant  were  extremely  meagre  and  defective.  He  was 
therefore  driven  to  accept  vague  and  doubtful  traditions,  and  if  he 
occasionally  offers  them  to  the  reader  without  testing  and  examining 
them  very  severely,  we  must  remember  that  the  canons  of  criticism 
were  not  as  yet  determined. 

Nor  is  it  difficult  to  justify  the  diffuseness  with  which  he  treats 
Tuscan  art  and  Tuscan  masters.  He  was  born  in  Tuscany,  and 
though  he  certainly  visited  most  of  the  principal  cities  in  Italy  twice, 
he  lived  nearly  all  his  life  in  Florence.  He  therefore  had  leisure  and 
opportunity  for  the  collection  of  materials  for  his  notices  of  Tuscan 
masters,  and  could  invoke  the  aid  of  friends  to  help  him  in  his 
researches.  It  was  impossible,  taking  into  account  his  brief  sojourns 
in  other  districts,  and  the  difficulties  of  communication  with  which  a 
writer  of  those  days  had  to  reckon,  that  he  should  have  been  as  well 
informed  about  the  masters  of  other  schools.  He  himself  often  laments 
that  he  can  give  but  a  brief  notice  of  artists  to  whom  he  would  gladly 
have  dedicated  several  pages.  He  had,  it  is  true,  agents  who  made 
researches  on  his  behalf  in  certain  districts,  as,  for  instance,  Gian 
Battlsta  Grassi,  who  supplied  him  with  "special  information  concerning 
things  in  Friuli,"  but  the  method  and  the  activity  of  his  "loving  and 
courteous"  friends  were  naturally  by  no  means  equal  to  his  own.  If, 
indeed,  we  find  occasional  passages  in  the  Lives  which  seem  to  betray 
a  preference  for  the  Tuscans,  is  it  just  to  quarrel  with  the  writer,  who, 
perhaps,  felt  himself  most  strongly  drawn   towards  the  great  creations 


HIS    SUPrOSEO    AVARICK  333 

among  which  he  had  been  born,  and  had  grcwn  up,  and  the  art  which 
he  had  studied  in  all  its  splendid  and  harmonious  development  ? 

Why,  we  may  reasonably  ask,  after  having  spoken  of  Corrc^ggio  in 
terms  of  the  most  enthusiastic  admiration,  should  he  have  proceeded 
to  invent  details  to  prove  him  sordid  and  miserly  ?  Why,  in  other 
cases,  does  he  lament  over  the  scantiness  of  his  materials,  instead  of 
drawing  a  series  of  finished  imaginary  portraits  ?  Why  docs  he 
content  himself  with  dry  catalogues  of  the  works  of  other  masters, 
concerning  whom  he  had  been  unable  to  glean  any  information,  instead 
of  giving  colour  and  vivacity  to  his  narrative  by  inventions  and  false- 
hoods ?  We  can  only  conclude  that  the  anecdotes  he  gives  us  of  certain 
artists  were  commonly  related  of  them  in  his  day,  just  as  similar  stories 
are  current  about  the  famous  men  of  our  own  times. 

Vasari  tells  us  that  Antonio  was  good  and  gentle,  of  a  timid 
disposition,  absorbed  in  his  family  cares  and  his  work,  and  highly 
sensitive.  He  adds  that  the  artist  was  miserly,  and  here  his  in- 
formants may  have  exaggerated,  or  he  himself  may  have  laid  on  the 
shadows  of  his  portrait  somewhat  heavily.  The  legends  of  Correggio's 
extreme  poverty  arose  from  a  mistaken  interpretation  of  the  passage  : 
"  He  was  so  bent  on  saving  that  he  became  miserly  {uiisero)  to  a 
degree."  The  Italian  word  ii/isero,  with  its  double  meaning, /c^r't' /-/)'- 
stricken  and  miserly,  has  strangely  enough  been  accepted  here  in  the 
first  of  these  senses,  though  the  whole  tenor  of  the  passage  clearly 
indicates  the  second. 

The   mistake  grew  with    repetition,    as    always    happens,    until    it 

assumed  the   most  exaggerated  form.     x'\nnibale    Carracci,    Scannelli, 

Giuseppe    Bigcllini,   and   some  others,  were  almost  persuaded  that  the 

painter  died   of  hunger.      A    reaction,    of   course,   took   place    in    due 

course,  and  when  it  was  actually  proved  that  he  possessed  houses  and 

lands,  his  poverty  was  suddenly  converted  into  wealth,  and  his  modest 

origin  became  a  nobility  dating  back  several  centuries.^ 

1  Mengs  (ii.  pp.  138,  144)  and  Pungileoni  (i.  p.  248)  went  so  far  as  to  adduce 
Correggio's  use  of  good  materials,  sucli  as  expensive  panels  and  colours,  for  his  work, 
as  a  proof  of  his  prosperous  social  condition.  'I'iraboschi  (vi.  \>.  240)  ver)'  justly  points 
out  the  absurdity  of  this  argument,  for  the  quality  of  his  materials  may  have  been  due, 
not  to  his  own  expenditure,  but  to  the  taste  and  liberality  of  his  patrons. 


AXrOXK  DA    CORRKGGIO 


! 


to  make  liis  book  amusing  ;  otcrs  arc  indignant  with  him  for  omitting 
to  mention  some  local  celebrit  ;  and  others  again  pronoimcc  him  as 
poor  a  critic  as  he  was  a  paiter  ! 

Unfortunate  Giorgetto  VasUario,  Arctinc  painter !  ^■?,  Henvenuto 
Cellini  calls  thee!  How  is  i  that  under  this  perpetual  shower  of 
stones  the  life  is  not  crushed  uit  of  thee  ? 

The  vcritd  vraic  in  this  maier  seems  to  be  that  half  the  reproaches 
heaped  upon  the  author  are  unjst  and  disingenuous. 

He  is  accused  of  being  conised  and  inaccurate,  more  especially  in 
his  history  of  the  revival  of  ar  in  its  first  manifestations.  But  access 
to  the  documents  preserved  in  ic  archives  was  denied  him.  and  all  art 
records  then  extant  were  extrmely  meagre  and  defective.  He  was 
therefore  driven  to  accept  vape  and  doubtful  traditions,  and  if  he 
occasionally  offers  them  to  thc-eader  without  testing  and  examining 
them  very  severely,  we  must  rmembcr  that  the  canons  of  criticism 
were  not  as  yet  determined. 

Nor  is  it  difficult  to  justil  the  diffuseness  with  which  he  treats 
Tuscan  art  and  Tuscan  masirs.  He  was  born  in  Tuscany,  and 
though  he  certainly  visited  mos  of  the  principal  cities  in  Italy  twice, 
he  lived  nearly  all  his  life  in  FIrence.  He  therefore  had  leisure  and 
opportunity  for  the  collection  c  materials  for  his  notices  of  Tuscan 
masters,  and  could  invoke  th  aid  of  friends  to  help  him  in  his 
researches.  It  was  impossibletaking  into  account  his  brief  sojourns 
in  other  districts,  and  the  difficlties  of  communication  with  which  a 
writer  of  those  days  had  to  reckn.  that  he  should  have  been  as  well 
informed  about  the  masters  of  oier  schools.  He  himself  often  laments 
that  he  can  give  but  a  brief  notie  of  artists  to  whom  he  would  gladly 
have  dedicated  several  pages.  He  had,  it  is  true,  agents  who  made 
researches  on  his  behalf  in  crtain  districts,  as,  for  instance,  Gian 
Battista  Grassi,  who  supplied  hii  with  "  special  information  concerning 
things  in  Friuli,"  but  the  metho  and  the  activity  of  his  "loving  and 
courteous"  friends  were  natural'  liy  no  means  equal  to  his  own.  If, 
indeed,  we  find  occasional  passacs  in  the  Lives  which  seem  to  betray 
a  preference  for  the  Tuscans,  is  just  to  quarrel  with  the  writer,  who, 
perhaps,  felt  himself  most  stron<y  drawn  towards  the  great  creations 


4 


HIS    SUPOSED    A^"ARI(•I; 


::i| 


among  which  he  had  been  bori  and  had  grcwn  up,  and  the  art  which 
he  had  studied  in  all  its  splendicand  harmonious  development  ? 

Why,  we  may  reasonably  as,  after  having  spoken  of  Correggio  in 
terms  of  the  most  enthusiastic  dmiration,  should  he  have  proceeded 
to  invent  details  to  prove  himsordid  and  miserly?  Why,  in  other 
cases,  does  he  lament  over  the  santiness  of  his  materials,  instead  of 
drawing  a  series  of  finished  naginary  portraits?  Why  does  he 
content  himself  with  dry  catalogcs  of  the  works  of  other  masters, 
concerning  whom  he  had  been  unble  to  glean  any  information,  instead 
ofgiving  colour  and  vivacity  to  h,  narrative  by  inventions  and  false- 
hoods ?  We  can  only  conclude  tha  the  anecdotes  he  gives  us  of  certain 
artists  were  commonly  related  of  thm  in  his  day,  just  as  similar  stories 
are  current  about  the  famous  men  <  our  own  times. 

Vasari  tells  us  that  Antonio  as  good  and  gentle,  of  a  timid 
disposition,  absorbed  in  his  famil)  cares  and  his  work,  and  highly 
sensitive.  He  adds  that  the  arti:  was  miserly,  and  here  his  in- 
formants may  have  exaggerated,  oihe  himself  may  have  laid  on  the 
shadows  of  his  portrait  somewhat  h«  vily.  The  legends  of  Correggio's 
extreme  poverty  aro.se  from  a  mist.-:i;n  interpretation  of  the  passage  : 
"  He  was  so  bent  on  saving  that  ic  became  miserly  {misero)  to  a 
degree."  The  Italian  word  w/Vt-;v, vith  its  double  meaning, /^r-^r/j'- 
stricl-cn  and  miscr/y,  has  strang<ly  enugh  been  accepted  here  in  the 
first  of  these  senses,  though  th<'  wble  tenor  of  the  passage  clearl)' 
indicates  the  second. 

The  mistake  grew  with  r<petitioi  as  always  happens,  until  it 
assumed  the  most  exaggerated  form.  .Annibale  Carracci,  Scannelli, 
Giuseppe  nigellini.  and  some  oth-rs,  ere  almost  persuaded  that  the 
painter  died  of  hunger.  .\  rc.iction.  )f  course,  took  place  in  due 
course,  and  when  it  was  actually  proved- hat  he  possessed  houses  and 
lands,  his  poverty  was  suddenly  convert!  into  wealth,  and  his  modest 
origin  became  a  nobility  dating  back  scvmI  centuries.' 

248) 


vent  so  far  as  to   adduce 

nels  and  colours,  for  liis  work, 

240)  very  justly  points 

lay  have  been  due, 


not  to  his  own  cxpcndi 


334  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

That  he  was  miserly  we  do  not  beheve.  An  amicable  arrangement, 
due  to  his  initiative,  brought  a  long  litigation  over  a  disputed  inheri- 
tance to  an  end.  We  can  well  believe,  on  the  other  hand,  that  he  was 
careful  and  saving.  It  may  be  that  a  presentiment  of  his  own  early 
death,  a  desire  to  leave  his  family  provided  for,  to  give  his  daughters 
(two  of  whom,  however,  died  young)  suitable  marriage  portions,  and  to 
make  his  son  Pomponio  independent,  to  some  extent,  of  his  profession, 
no  less  than  the  disposition  inherited  from  frugal  and  laborious  parents, 
induced  a  sense  of  wise  economy.  This  disposition,  misinterpreted  or 
exaggerated  by  some,  caused  him  to  be  considered  miserly,  a  trait  the 
more  likely  to  excite  remark  in  his  case,  because  of  the  absurd  theory 
which  obtains  among  the  herd,  that  an  artist  must  of  necessity  be 
eccentric,  unmethodical,  extravagant,  and  fantastic. 

That  there  was  a  strain  of  sadness  in  his  character,  or,  as  Vasari 
says,  that  his  temperament  was  "  melancholic,"  is  not  incompatible  with 
the  joyous  and  cheerful  serenity  of  his  art.  The  artist's  psychology  is 
not  always  apparent  in  his  works.  A  strange  duality  sometimes  pro- 
claims itself  in  the  natural  disposition  and  the  intellectual  production 
of  a  man.  Some  happy  and  sweet-tempered  souls  can  express  none 
but  gloomy  and  violent  thoughts  with  pen  or  brush,  and  others,  of  a 
silent  and  brooding  habit,  burst  upon  us  with  unsuspected  fire,  vivacity, 
and  humour  in  their  artistic  creations. 

In  his  last  years,  circumstances  were  not  wanting  which  may  have 
aggravated  his  natural  melancholy.  Foremost  among  these  was  the 
death  of  his  wife.  Yet  Vasari's  phrase,  "  that  he  grieved  more  than  was 
reasonable  under  the  weight  of  those  passions  which  are  common  to 
all  men,"  seems  to  us  a  just  and  acute  pronouncement  on  his  character. 
Devoted  to  his  art,  absorbed  in  the  marvellous  visions  of  his  genius, 
intent  on  the  loveliness  created  by  his  own  brush,  Correggio  no  doubt 
felt  a  perturbation  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  actual  trouble  when  some 
small  mishap  forced  him  to  withdraw  himself  from  communings  with 
the  gods,  and  brought  him  into  momentary  conflict  with  his  fellow- 
men.  Too  modest,  on  the  one  hand,  to  seek  for  praise,  we  think 
he  must  have  been  keenly  sensitive  to  criticism,  even  of  the  most 
ignorant    and    irresponsible   kind.      The    witticism  of  the  canon,  when 


CORREGC-.IOS    TO.Nn!  335 

his  frescoes  in  the  cathedral  were  first  displayed,  must  have  been 
very  bitter  to  him. 

This  modest  reticence,  this  shrinking  sensibiHty,  no  doubt  explains 
why  Correggio  never  sought  to  measure  himself  against  the  other 
famous  artists  of  his  time,  in  some  great  centre  of  Italian  culture. 
Gentle  and  retiring,  contented  with  his  lot,  without  ambition,  he  may 
have  felt  no  aspirations  after  the  successes  of  his  contemporaries, 
perhaps  had  no  idea  that  he  himself  was  their  equal,  in  some  respects 
indeed  their  superior. 

His  simple  mind  was  satisfied  with  the  affectionate  adminui(~>n  of 
his  pupils  and  friends.  His  desires  and  efforts  all  centred  in  the 
peaceful  and  constant  exercise  of  his  art.  Francesco  Algarotti  wrote 
as  follows  to  Antonio  Maria  Zanotti  in  1761  :  "  If  fortune  is  lacking, 
why  should  not  your  own  merit  content  you  ?  Merit  is  no  empty 
name  ;  it  will  at  least  give  you  a  subsistence,  and  will  keej)  you  happily 
employed  all  day.  Correggio  and  Barocci  were  of  this  mind  ;  the 
one  remained  at  Parma,  the  other  at  Urbino  ;  and  they  were  more 
happy  and  contented  than  many  kings'  painters."  ^ 

Scarcely  more  than  a  century  after  his  death,  Correggio's  tomb  in 
the  church  of  San  Francesco  was  demolished.  It  was  under  a  recess 
in  the  outside  wall  of  the  church,  adjoining  the  cloister  of  the  cemetery, 
and  was  destroyed  in  16-II,  when  certain  alterations  were  carried  out. 
Tiraboschi,  quoting  from  a  letter  of  Padre  Resta's,  dated  November  30, 
1695,  says  that  when  Correggio's  sepulchral  niche  was  taken  away, 
"  his  bones  were  removed,  and  were  perhaps  placed  where  the  chapel  of 
San  Giuseppe  da  Copertino  now  stands,  or  near  the  side  door  by  which 
the  church  is  entered  from  the  porch.'"-  The  chronicler  Bulbarini,  in 
one  of  his  notes  to  the  Zuccardi  chronicle,  is  more  precise:  "  In  the 
outer  cloister  of  San  Francesco,  where  the  miracle  of  the  mule  adoring 
the  Blessed  Sacrament  is  painted,  there  was  a  chapel,  like  a  room,  with 
an  altar,  the  picture  from  which  is  now  in  the  Arrivabeni  Chapel  ;  at 
the  base  of  this  altar  was  a  tomb  with  a  wooden  lid,  on  which  was 
carved  Antonins  dc  Allcgris  pictor.  When  the  chapel  was  demolished, 
the  bones  of  the  dead  man  in  this  tomb  were  interred  not  far  off,  that 
1  Bottari,  Lctterc,  vii.  p.  475.  -  Vol.  vi.  p.  299. 


338 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


with  all  care,  in  expectation  of  further  orders  from  his  Serene  High- 
ness. His  Serene  Highness  Avishes  the  skull  to  be  preserved  in  the 
Academy  of  this  city,  as  is  that  of  Raphael  at  Rome,  and  as  there  can 
be  no  disadvantage  therefrom,  but  rather  a  benefit  and  great  increase  of 
prestige  to  the  Academy,  his  wish  may  be  carried  out  by  the  above 
means  without  any  difficulty  whatever.  Having  now  explained  the 
sovereign  will  to  my  esteemed  Signor  Conte,  it  only  remains  for  him 
to  execute  and  cause  it  to  be  executed  with  all  possible  despatch 
and  with  the  utmost  care  and  circum- 
spection." 

Fabrizi  understood  that  it  was  use- 
less to  insist  any  further,  and  that  he 
must  make  up  his  mind  to  hold  a 
candle  to  the  devil !  The  tomb  was 
ransacked  with  a  great  show  of  rever- 
ence and  enthusiasm  ;  a  number  of 
bones  were  removed,  which  were  sent 
to  the  Palazzo  Communale  ;^  the  first 
skull  that  was  picked  up  was  gravely 
handed  round  and  examined  by  all  the 

rm  *  ^w     s.  [irosaic    Hamlets     present,   and     finally 

^■^  sent  off    to    Modena.     There   were,    of 

^  course,   other   skulls    in    the   tomb,   but 

these  were  not  taken  out  with  the  bones, 
i_  lest  suspicion  should  be  roused.      It  was 

given  out  that  only  the  skeleton  of  the 
""""'""  painter   had    been  discovered,  and   that 

111  llie  Piazza,  P.um.i 

this  had  been  equally  divided  between 
Correggio  and  Modena  ;  the  skull,  that  is  to  say,  to  the  ducal  city,- 
the  rest  of  the  body  to  his   native  town. 

Creole's  foolish  and   unworthy  artifice  has  brought  its  own  punish- 
ment  in  the   discovery  of  the   letters   here   reproduced.      But   even   if 

'  'rhcsc  bones  were  i>laced  under  the  monument  erected  to  AUegri  at  Correggio 
in   iSSo. 

'-  II.  is  still  preserved  in  the  R.  Iiistituto  di  lielie  Arli  at  ^[odena.  Why  is  it  not  sent 
back  and  rei)laced  in  some  tomb  in  the  church  of  San  Francesco? 


THE    HISTORY    OF   A    SKULL 


these  had  never  come  to  light,  the  fraud  would  have  been  exposed  by 
the  anatomical  examination  of  the  skull,  which  shows  it  to  have  be- 
longed to  a  woman  of  advanced  age.^  Such  are  the  pitiless  results  of 
criticism,  with  its  indiscreet  insistence  on  proofs  and  verifications  !  But 
for  this  merciless  examination  of  facts,  we  should  be  admiring  Cor- 
reggio's  lineaments  in  the  face  of  a  country  priest,  and  reverencing 
the  skull  of  a  toothless  old  woman  as  the  shrine  of  his  mighty  genius! 
We  are  glad  that  our  painter's  fellow- 
citizens  took  no  part  in  this  act  of 
deceit  and  profanation.  It  would  be 
a  pity  that  even  the  slightest  stain 
should  sully  the  history  of  their  devo- 
tion. They  watched  with  pride  the 
development  of  his  genius,  gave  him 
his  first  commissions,  secured  the 
peace  of  his  last  years,  and  stoutly 
opposed  the  thief  who  substituted 
copies  for  his  original  works  by  the 
ducal  orders  at  a  later  date.  They 
honoured  the  prophet  who  was  given 
them,  and  this  inclines  us  to  deal 
leniently  with  their  tardiness  in  pro- 
viding a  suitable  monument  to  his 
memory. 

We  have  already  seen  how  in  [612 
a  first  appeal  to  the  Correggese  was 
made  in  vain,  and  how  Conti,  a  resi-  in  the  Piazza,  coi-reggio. 

dent  in  Rome,  set  up  the  memorial  we  have  mentioned,  some  thirty- 
five  years  later.  In  1682,  the  Council  was  assembled  "by  the  tolling 
of  the  great  bell "  to  consider  a  scheme  for  the  erection  of  a  marble 
monument  to  Correggio.  Three  years  passed  before  a  faculty  was 
granted    for    its    execution,-  and    yet    another  three    before    Giovanni 


'  Bigi,  (5/.  a'/,  p.  98. 

-  Communal  Archives  of  Correggio.     /^Ci^isfro  des;/i  atti  dd  dvisiglio  ComuiiaU'  dal 
1647  al  1694. 


540 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


Martino   Baini    submitted    designs   and    terms  to    the  Council.^      But 
nothing  came  of  all  these  meetings,  deliberations,  and  discourses. 

Girolamo  Tiraboschi  tells  us  that  Padre  Resta,  indignant  at  the 
dilatory  manner  in  which  the  Correggese  treated  all  proposals  for 
commemorating  the  great  artist  who  had  made  their  city  glorious, 
declared  himself  "  ready  to  undertake  the  charges  of  a  suitable  monu- 
ment," for  which  purpose  he  proposed  to  raise  money  by  the  sale  of 
a  number  of  drawings  he  believed  to  be  by  Corregglo.  He  went  so 
far  as  to  have  a  bust  carved  for  the  proposed  memorial.  But  finding 
no  purchaser  for  his  drawings,  and  being  unable  to  provide  the 
necessary  funds,  he  professed  his  willingness  to  hand  over  the  bust 
to  the  Correggese.  Disgusted,  perhaps,  when  he  saw  that  the  latter 
made  no  attempt  to  carry  out  the  scheme  he  had  been 
forced  to  abandon,  he  changed  his  mind,  and  sent  it 
to  Monsignor  Resta,  Bishop  of  Tortona.- 

It  is  unnecessary  to  give  a  detailed  list  of  busts 
and  memorials  erected  to  Correggio  in  other  places. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  in  1870  a  statue  of  the  painter 
by  Agostino  Ferrarini  was  unveiled  in  the  Piazza 
Grande  of  Parma,  and  that  in  the  same  year  a  com- 
mittee was  formed  at  Correggio  "  to  repair  a  great  wrong  hitherto  un- 
expiated,  and  remove  the  reproach  of  a  prolonged  ingratitude,  for  which 
every  worthy  citizen  must  fe-el  remorse."  This  time  the  deliberations 
of  the  committee  had  a  practical  result.  A  subscription  was  set  on 
foot,  and  a  sufficient  sum  was  raised  to  allow  of  the  execution  of  a 
statue  by  the  famous  sculptor,  Vincenzo  Vela,  which  was  publicly 
dedicated  to  Correggio's  memory  in  his  own  city,  on  October  1 7,  1 880/' 

1  Pungileoni,  iii.  p.  46.  The  i)roposed  monument  was  to  have  I)ccn  crowned  with 
a  heraldic  shield,  jjerhaps  the  arms  of  the  commune.  Domenico  Manni,  however, 
reproduced  a  supposed  coat  of  arms  of  Correggio,  which  was  in  the  possession  of  the 
Marchese  Alfonso-Taccoli,  of  Parma.  The  crest  is  a  horse.  See  Osscroaziotii  storiche 
circa  i  sigilli  a?tfichi,  vol.  xxix.  No.  75.  Florence,  1784.  Tliis  \olume  contains"  an 
anonymous  biographical  sketch  of  Correggio,  dated  March   2,   1716. 

2  Vol.  vi.  p.  299. 

■'■  O.  1!.  I'antuzzi,  Del  Moiiumento  al  Correggio,  opera  di  J'iiiceiizo  Vela  (Correggio, 
1  cSS  I ),  and  Antonio  Allegri,  Conferenza.  Correggio,  i  cS8o.  I).  ( ;.  Cesare  Marchi  Castellini, 
Antonio  Allegri,  detto  il  Correggio,   Vincenzo  Vela  e  Luigi  Asioli.     Correggio,  1880. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE   GENIUS    AND   STYLE    OF    CORREGOIO 

PERSONALITV^SCHOOL— COMPOSITION— CORREGGIO  AND  MICHELANGELO  COMPARED — 
SUBJECTS — DRAWING — HIS  INTUITIVE  SENSE  OF  FORESHORTENING — HIS  SENTIMENT — 
GREAT  ARTISTS  CONTEMPORARY  WITH  HIM— HIS  TUMULTUOUS  GROUPING  OF  FIGURES 
IN  MOTION — RELIGIOUS  FEELING  AND  SENSUALITY — ESSENTIAL  CHARACTERISTICS 
OF  ART— CORREGGIO'S  TECHNIQUE— CHIAROSCURO  — LIGHT — COLOUR — HIS  AFFINITY 
WITH  LFONARDO,  f.IORGIONF,  AND  LORFNZO  LOTTO — TECHNICAL  METHODS — HIS  USE 
OF   THE    BRU^H-    "CORRr(,i  I(>sIT\  "    \Mi    "DEMONIAC    FORCE." 

WE  know  that  Ortcnsio 
Landi  was  the  first  to 
appreciate  Corrcggio's 
L;i-cat  artistic  personality.  Th(^ 
prolonged  hesitation  of  criticism 
ia  detc:rmining  who  were  his 
masters,  and  to  what  school  he 
might  jjroperly  be  affiliated,  de- 
monstrates more  plainly  than  any 
affirmations,  ancient  or  modern, 
how  complete  was  the  domina- 
tion of  individual  over  acquired 
qualities  in  his  art.  Nay,  more  ; 
if     we     consider      the     gradual 


342  ANTONIO    DA    rORREOGIO 

development  of  other  great  Italian  painters,  we  shall  see  that  very  few 
among  them  worked  out  their  own  artistic  salvation  so  unswervingly, 
or  saw  the  world  around  them  in  a  light  so  peculiarly  individual.  In 
this  respect  his  only  peers  are  Leonardo  and  Michelangelo  ;  and  even 
here,  the  advantages  of  the  comparison  are  on  his  side  ;  the  influence 
of  Tuscan  art,  especially  that  of  Verrocchio,  is  more  obvious  in  the 
case  of  Leonardo,  and  that  of  Jacopo  della  Querela,  Donatello,  and 
Luca  Signorelli  in  the  case  of  Michelangelo,  than  are  the  influences 
of  the  Ferrarese  and  of  Mantegna  in  the  works  of  Corregglo.  With 
Raphael  and  Titian  we  arc  not  here  concerned,  for  the  evolution 
of  formuL-e  which  culminated  in  their  manner  is  absolutely  logical 
and  self-evident. 

Correggio  s  development,  on  the  other  hand,  has  been  a  fruitful 
theme  of  discussion.  He  was  long  supposed  to  have  been  a  member  of 
the  Lombard  school,  and  to  have  come  under  the  immediate  influence 
of  Leonardo  ;  then,  after  a  certain  manipulation  of  conflicting  dates,  he 
was  relegated  to  Mantua,  and  pronounced  a  disciple  of  Mantegna  ; 
academic  classicism  could  not  brook  the  thought  of  his  exemption  from 
Roman  influences,  and  proclaimed  him  a  student  of  Raphael,  Buonarroti, 
and  the  antiques  of  the  Eternal  City  ;  finally,  by  a  bold  and  happy 
inspiration,  his  affiliation  to  these  various  schools  was  cancelled,  and  he 
was  handed  over  to  that  of  Ferrara.  Correggio  indeed  assimilated  all 
the  energy  of  this  latter,  and  reinforced  it  with  the  depth  and  grandeur 
of  Mantegna's  conceptions,  but  only  to  prepare  himself  for  lofty  and 
independent  flight.  These  influences  were  but  the  point  ifappiti,  as  it 
were,  whence  he  rose  and  soared  on  the  wings  of  his  own  genius.  To 
discover  their  traces,  we  are  compelled  to  a  close  analysis  of  his  work, 
seeking  them  within  the  narrow  limits  of  a  tint,  a  fold,  or  a  type.  .Such 
traces,  barely  recognisable  in  his  mature  creations,  are  by  no  means 
proclamatory  even  in  his  juvenile  works,  where  conventional  and 
scholastic  traits  are  already  transfused  with  personal  sentiment. 

This  individuality  seems  to  have  disconcerted  Vasari,  who  found 
it  impossible  to  class  him  in  the  school  of  the  Emilia.  Before  he 
had  e.xplored  the  territory,  and  seen  Correggio's  work,  he  seems 
to   have    had    no    suspicion    that    art    in    this    region   was    not   quietly 


^■ASAR^s  (RrncisM  oi'  correckjto  343 

working  out  the  formula;  of  the  fifteenth  century,  or  that  its  (levelo[)- 
ment  had  passed  beyond  the  stage  marked  by  the  works  of  l-'rancia 
and  Costa.  Vasari,  who  had  spent  his  Hfe  between  Rome  and  I'lorence, 
looked  upon  the  Emilian  school  as  antiquated.  We  gather  this  from 
his  acceptance  of  the  legend  that  b'rancia  died  of  mortihcation  when 
he  saw  in  Raphael's  Sain^  Ccc-iiia  the  condemnation  of  his  own  art, 
and  it  is  even  more  clearly  apparent  in  his  words,  when,  with  ill- 
concealed  wonder,  he  pronounces  Correggio  to  have  successfully  at- 
tained to  "  the  modern  manner."  ^  This  unexpected  discovery  leads 
him  to  lament  that  the  painter  had  never  been  to  Rome,  where  "  he 
would  have  done  M'onders,  and  given  trouble  to  many  who  in  his  time 
were  accounted  great." 

Vasari's  regrets  are,  01  course,  unshared  by  those  who  believe 
that  Correggio's  originality  was  largely  due  to  his  isolated  life. 
Michelangelo's  influence,  it  is  often  said,  would  have  been  fatal  to 
him  ;  and  in  support  of  this  theory,  Buonarroti's  effect  upon  Raphael 
has  been  cited  for  the  thousandth  time,  by  those  who  forget,  also  for 
the  thousandth  time,  that  Raphael's  genius  was  above  all  things 
assimilative.  We  think  that  criticism  should  no  longer  lend  itself  to 
these  facile  hypotheses  and  conditional  theorisings.  The  originality  ot 
Correggio  would  not  have  been  easily  turned  aside  from  its  natural 
artistic  bent  ;  his  genius,  under  the  implied  conditions,  might  rather 
have  served  to  temper  the  consequences  of  Michelangelo's  stern  and 
terrible  power.  The  life  of  a  great  intellectual  centre  may  cither 
quicken  or  destroy  an  assimilative  talent  ;  it  has  no  such  power  over 
great  original  gifts.  But  why  should  we  insist  further  ?  l^ersonal 
tendencies  determine  the  course  adopted  by  men,  and  Correggio 
arrived  at  the  summit  of  artistic  greatness  without  travelling  thither 
by  way  of  Rome. 

At  Parma,  however,  far  from  the  direct  influences  alike  ol 
antique  art  and  of  the  great  moderns,  both  such  irresistible  forces  in 
Rome,  he  was  able  to  preserve  his  own  sincerity  and  follow  out  the 
bent  of  his  peculiar  aptitudes,  which  displayed  themselves  more 
especially  in  the  movement  and  variety  of  multitudinous  flgures,  in 
Vik,  iv.  p.  no. 


344  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

audacity  of  grouping,  in  a  consummate  mastery  of  perspective,  com- 
bined, nevertheless,  with  great  simplicity  of  conception  and  unity  of 
idea. 

His  compositions  are  never  characterised  by  a  lofty  development 
of  thought  or  incident.  The  life  he  expresses  in  each  subject  is 
never  complicated  by  contrasts,  but  unfolds  itself  in  a  smooth,  con- 
tinuous harmony,  broken  at  most  only  by  the  gradations  of  a 
dominant  sentiment.  It  is  a  life  entirely  independent  of  realistic  or 
historic  elements. 

In  his  Last  Supper,  Leonardo  opposed  a  wonderful  variety  of 
purely  human  emotions  to  the  divine  resignation  of  the  Saviour ; 
Raphael,  in  his  Vatican  frescoes,  expressed  the  spirit  of  the  Papal 
Court  during  the  Renaissance,  in  its  extraordinary  union  of  theological 
and  humanistic  activities.  He  emphasises  this  versatility  by  placing 
the  Dispute  of  the  Sacrament  beside  the  School  of  Athens.  The  com- 
position of  these  masters  is  occasionally  extremely  simple  ;  but  their 
spiritual  intention  is  always  complex  and  profound.  Correggio,  on  the 
other  hand,  informs  his  tumultuous  throngs  with  greater  warmth  and 
vivacity  ;  but  they  are  all  animated  by  some  single  aim,  some  trans- 
parent idea.  He  gives  us  no  "  linked  sweetness  "  of  varied  harmonies, 
but  one  strain  of  infinite  melody,  sung  by  a  thousand  voices  in  unison. 
In  the  cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangclista  we  sec  the  Saviour  soaring 
heavenward  among  his  Apostles  ;  in  the  dome  of  the  cathedral,  the 
Virgin  ascends,  surrounded  by  saints  and  angels.  Even  in  these  two 
grand  works,  we  are  impressed  by  the  greatness  of  the  painter,  rather 
than  that  of  his  conception,  which  is  extremely  simple,  and  so  expressed 
that  its  significance  is  apparent  at  a  glance. 

The  dissimilarity  of  aim  is  even  more  striking  if  we  compare 
Correggio's  works  with  those  of  Michelangelo  in  the  Sistine  Chapel, 
where  life  is  studied  under  its  most  solemn  and  fateful  aspect,  from  the 
hour  of  creation  to  the  day  of  doom,  with  a  poetic  intensity  which 
seems  to  vibrate  between  the  harmonies  of  the  Scriptures  and  those  of 
Dante. 

Nevertheless,  Correggio  has  one  (juality  in  common  with  Michel- 
angelo.     This  is  his  intuitive  perception  of  a  subject  as  Jorni.      With 


CORREGGIO    AND    MICHRLANGRLO  345 

both,  an  idea,  no  matter  of  what  nature,  was  not  a  purely  psychical 
phenomenon,  which  oradually  took  substance  after  long  fatigue  and 
labour  on  the  part  of  its  creator  ;  it  sprang  at  once  into  concrete 
being,  as  it  were,  and  found  an  immediate  plastic  expression,  so 
great  was  their  imaginative  knowledge  of  effect^  and  their  unerring 
skill  of  hand.  Every  impression  which  their  minds  received  came 
to  them  in  definite  artistic  form,  and  this  is  the  secret  of  their 
individual  and  spontaneous  style.  Each,  according  to  his  tempera- 
ment and  manner,  set  free  the  images  of  his  inner  vision,  and  gave 
them  a  special  truth  and  reality,  which  yet  show  little  evidence 
of  direct  study  from  actual  models.  This  peculiarity  of  their  genius 
may  perhaps  explain  the  fact  that  neither  of  them  painted  any 
portraits,  either  as  separate  studies,  or  in  their  great  compositions, 
whereas  these  are  of  frequent  occurrence  in  the  cviivre  of  Raphael, 
Titian,  and  many  other  great  masters.  That  Correggio's  types  were 
not  directly  derived  from  nature,  but  were  idealised  by  passage  through 
his  brain,  seems  to  be  further  evidenced  to  some  extent  by  an  ethno- 
logical fact.  In  the  streets  of  Parma  we  meet  at  every  turn  with  faces 
which  recall  the  genial  types  of  Parmigianino  and  Anselmi,  whereas 
a  Correggesque  head  is  never  seen. 

Now  this  innate  cohesion  of  form  and  idea,  due  to  the  strength 
of  the  imaginative  faculty,  is  more  marked  in  Correggio  and  in 
Michelangelo   than  in  any  other  artist  of  the    Renaissance. 

But  the  intimate  artistic  faculty  common  to  both  these  great  men 
resulted  in  no  real  affinity  as  far  as  their  creations  are  concerned. 
Other  personal  elements  divided  them  sharply  one  from  another.  The 
genius  of  the  one  was  grandiose,  complex,  and  austere  ;  that  of  the 
other,  simple,  pellucid,  joyous. 

Correggio  showed  himself  superior  to  Buonarroti  in  his  splendour 
of  colour,  in  the  restrained  power  of  his  modelling;  in  his  joyous  ease 
and  animation,  in  the  transparency  of  his  tints,  he  surpassed  Raphael  ; 
but  he  is  unquestionably  the  inferior  of  both  in  variety  and  in  fancy, 
as  in  grandeur  and  impressive  solemnity  of  composition. 

Allowing  this,  and  recognising  the  extreme  simplicity  of  his  con- 
ceptions, it  cannot  be   denied  that  he  showed   a  lofty  imagination   in 

Y    V 


346  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

their  treatment,  an  admirable  originality,  a  keen  sense  of  breadth  and 
expression  in  the  use  of  line. 

Some,  indeed,  have  quarrelled  with  Correggio,  not  only  for  his 
want  of  grandeur,  but  for  a  supposed  lack  of  harmony  in  his  com- 
positions. They  were,  perhaps,  unable  to  pardon  his  rejection  of 
traditional  forms,  his  indifference  to  symmetry,  or  rather,  to  academic 
repose.^  Cochin  condemned  him  for  having  made  his  Apostles  in  the 
cupola  of  San  Giovanni  of  colossal  stature,  and  imagines  him  to  have 
overlooked  the  fact  that  their  vast  proportions  would  detract  from  the 
apparent  size  of  the  dome.  The  French  traveller,  however,  ignored 
a  fact  Correggio  wisely  took  into  account,  namely,  that  in  the  gloom 
of  the  dimly  lighted  church,  the  figures  would  have  been  invisible  had 
they  been  smaller." 

It  is  true  that  Correggio  is  above  all  things  a  painter  ;  nay,  more; 
he  may  perhaps  be  called  the  painter  piu'  excellence  among  the  great 
Italians.  But  we  may  recognise  this  truth  without  detracting  from  his 
other  qualities.  Of  his  drawing  we  shall  speak  presently.  His  com- 
positions have  been  condemned  as  "uninteresting,"  and  as  "  lacking  in 
true  beauty."  It  is  admitted  that  "  he  grouped  his  figures  skilfully  "  ; 
but,  continues  the  critic,  "  his  chief  concern  was  for  the  distribution  of 
masses  in  his  chiaroscuro,  rather  than  for  truth  of  expression." 

Thus  is  Correggio  offered  up  as  a  sacrifice  by  those  who  wish  to 
glorify  Raphael  ! 

They  ignore  the  severe  and  dignified  treatment  of  the  evangelists 
and  doctors  in  the  pendentives  of  San  Giovanni,  and  of  the  Apostles 
in  the  dome  above  ;  the  lunette  in  the  same  church,  with  the  Evan- 
gelist of  Patmos,  a  supreme  example  of  Correggio's  mastery  of  line  ; 
they  overlook  the  triumphant  originality  of  the  Madonna  with  St. 
Jerome  and  the  Notte,  as  contrasted  with  that  obedience  to  accepted 
forms  (in  which,  nevertheless,  we  detect  a  new  animation)  which 
characterises  the  first  and  the  last  of  his  great  altar-pieces,  the  Madonna 
7i<itli  St.  Francis,  and  the  Madonna  with  St.  George. 

It  is  obvious  that  he  was  not  solely  preoccupied  with  pictorial  effect, 

'   Mcngs,  Oj^cn;  L  ]i.  183. 

-  Ilistoii-c  lies  Pciiilrcs  dc  toiitcs  Ics  Ecolcs.     Lc  Conii^c,  by  Paul  Rocliciy.     Paris,  1876. 


CHARAf^TERISTirS    OF    HIS    ART 


as  is  supposed,  but  that  his  artistic  decisions  were  governed  by  an 
intense  perception  of  pictorial  unity.  His  treatment  was  further 
influenced  by  his  anxiety  to  give  h'fe  and  movement  to  all  his  figures,  to 
have  no  inert  and  purposeless  character  in  the  drama.  In  cxpressino- 
the  sentiment  of 
a  conception  by 
the  play  of  atti- 
tude and  gesture 
he  has  had  few- 
rivals,  and  this 
is  the  more 
remarkable,  in 
that  the  art  of 
his  time  sought 
beauty  rather  in 
harmony  of  lines 
than  in  unity 
of  interest.  The 
number  of  siipcr- 
muncrarics  in- 
troduced purely 
for  effect  in  the 
great  pictures  of 
the  period  is 
a  characteristic 
feature  of  the 
age.  In  Correg- 
gio's  work,  on 
the    other  hand, 

MADONNA    AND    CHILD,    WIThI  ST.   SEBASTIAN    AND    ST.    KOCI!,"  I'-V  ,  ANSELMI. 

each  person  has  r    ,    p       r-  n 

i  III  the  Parma  Gallery. 

his  function.    St. 

Joseph  is  no  longer  a  melancholy  and  passive  intruder ;  he  par- 
ticipates in  the  joy  of  the  Virgin  ;  he  gathers  fruit  for  the  Child, 
or  plies  his  trade  beside  the  pair.  The  angels  no  longer  gaze 
from    the    canvas    in    rapt    and    motionless    abstraction.      They    seek 

V    V    2 


348 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


to   divert   the    Infant  Jesus  ;  they   turn   the  pages  of  a  book  for  him, 
offer    him    fruits,   help    St.   Joseph   to    draw    down   the    branches    of 

the  date-palm,  or 
tether  the  ass  to 
a  tree.  Youthful 
genii,  scattered  in 
joyous  profusion 
throughout  his 
compositions,  are 
busily  employed 
in  supporting 
models  of  cities, 
pastoral  staves, 
books, and  mitres; 
they  peer  into  the 
Magdalen's  jar  of 
ointment,  or  play 
with  St.  George's 
armour. 

It  is  clear  that 
this     intensity    of 
life,  e.xprcssing  it- 
self harmoniously 
in     every    detail, 
tends   to   the   production   of   an  emotional,  rather  than   of  a   technical 
effect  ;  and  therefore,  that  the   artist's  desire  to   express  his  thought 
was  at  least  equal  to  his  passion  for  pictorial  result. 

Hence  it  would  seem  that  criticism  has  occasionally  confused 
beauty  and  harmony  of  composition  with  lircadth  and  grandeur  of 
subject.  The  themes  which  agitated  the  minds  of  the  pontifical  court, 
and  suggested  the  works  of  Michelangelo  and  Raphael,  were  no  doubt 
more  complex  than  those  which  contented  Correggio,  and  demanded  a 
more  intense  application  of  the  intellect. 

Correggio's  pictorial  tendencies  are,  perhaps,  most  clearly  mani- 
fested  in   his   drawings,  which   rarely,   if  ever,   consist   of  careful  and 


rt    ST.   ZACHAHIAH,    B' 
the  Uffizi,  Florence. 


HIS    DRAWINGS 


349 


accurate  studies  of  details,  or  display  a  very  conscientious  study 
of  contours.  They  are  simply  impressions,  the  principal  object  of 
which  is  the  distribution  of  figures,  and  the  massing  of  light  and 
shadow.  In  early  times  they  were  not  very  greatly  valued.  Vasari, 
who  owned  some,  wrote  as  follows  :  "  If  Antonio  had  not  carric^d  out 
his  works  with  that  final  perfection  which  we  see  in  them,  his  drawings 
(though  they  are  good  in  style,  and  pleasing,  and  show  the  technical 
ease  of  a  master) 
would  not  have  en- 
titled him  to  take 
that  high  rank  won 
for  him  by  his  pic- 
tures." ^ 

As  the  master's 
fame  increased,  the 
demand  for  his 
drawings  and  their 
market  value  in- 
creased proportion- 
ately. Towards  the 
close  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century,  we 
find  Giuseppe  Pi- 
nacci  delivering 
himself  in  thiswise: 
"  As  to  drawings, 
they  are  all  highly 
prized  when  they 
are  by  masters  of 
the  first  rank,  I 
mean  old  masters. 
Mantegna,  how- 
ever, is  perhaps  the  earliest  of  those  masters  whose  drawings  seem 
to    be  equally    prized     as    objects 

1    Vih;  iv.  p.  113. 


BY    CIKOLA 

N.iples  Ml 


)f    study    and    as    pleasure-givi 


ANTONIO    DA   CORRF.GGIO 


possessions.  The  drawings  most  sought  after  are  those  which  are 
highly  finished  and  in  good  preservation.  As  to  studies  of  draperies, 
feet,  hands,  and  mere  sketches  of  accessories,  even  if  by  famous  masters, 
they  are  only  in  demand  among  painters  ;  and  they  are  esteemed 
only  if  by  one  of  three  authors,  when  they  are  prized  for  their  rarity, 

as  much  as  for  the  great 
names  of  the  draughts- 
men, that  is  to  say, 
Michelangelo,  Raphael, 
and  Correggio.  Every 
scrap  of  paper  touched 
on  by  these  is  of  value."  ^ 
Almost  at  the  same  date 
Zanetti,  speaking  of 
drawings  to  an  amateur, 
exclaimed  :  "  You,  with 
your  cultivated  taste, 
will  be  on  your  guard 
against  those  who  praise 
and  cry  up  a  thing- 
worth  a  few  pence  with 
protestations  and  per- 
juries, trying  to  pass  it 
off  as  by  Titian,  Cor- 
reggio, or  Raphael."  - 
To  this  higher  estimate 
the  new  direction  given 
to  research  contributed 
very  powerfully.  Early 
collectors  sought  ex- 
amples solely  for  their  intrinsic  interest.  A  desire  to  acquire  sketches 
in  order  to  follow  the  artist  from  his  first  conception  to  his  subsequent 
corrections,  tracing  the  evolution  of  his  work,  was  a  growth  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  and  may  be  reckoned  among  the  benefits  of  an  age 
'  Bottari,  ii.  ii.  121.  -  Vol.  ii.  p.  133. 


Gallery. 


HIS   DRAUGHTSMANSHIP 


35' 


peculiarly  rich  In  artistic  activities.  The  Jesuit  Leonardelli,  in  a  small 
and  practically  unknown  book,  thus  expands  an  idea  of  Pliny's : 
"  Pictures  left  unfinished  by  gifted  painters  are  highly  prized  and  held 
in  great  consideration,  because  in  them  we  discern  what  is  not  to  be 
seen  in  the  colours,  but  was  imaged  in  the  brain  of  the  dead.  Those 
lightly  sketched  heads,  those  imperfect  features,  those  fragmentary 
lines,  foreshadow  the  beauty  with  which  the  skilled  hand  meant  to 
endow  the  finished  work,  and  manifest  those  occult  fancies  which  the 
brush  was  not  permitted  to  set  forth  in  their  integrity  as  finished 
creations."  '  The  carelessness  of  Antonio's  little  sketches  and  jottings, 
for  which  he  often  atones  by  traits  of  wonderful  actuality  and  fascinating 
vigour,  has  not  been  so  freely  condemned  as  his  drawing  in  his  great 
works.  In  the  first  edition  of  his  Liz'cs,  Vasarl  indirectly  accuses  him 
of  a  want  of  thoroughness  in  his  drawing  by  saying  that  if  this  had  been 
as  good  as  his  colour,  he  would  have  "caused  amazement  in  heaven, 
and  have  filled  the  earth  with  wonder."  Lodovico  Dolce  spoke  more 
plainly  :  "  It  is  true  that  he  was  a  better  colourist  than  draughtsman."  - 

The  judgment  pronounced  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century 
was,  of  course,  handed  on  with  gradual  exaggerations  down  to  the 
time  of  Sandrart  and  Mengs,  the  latter  of  whom  described  Correggio's 
drawing  as  grand  and  fascinating,  but  inaccurate.'^ 

It  is  curious  to  note,  however,  that  this  accusation  seems  almost 
always  to  have  been  followed  by  certain  misgivings  in  the  minds  of 
those  who  made  it.  'Vasarl  suppressed  his  disparaging  allusions  in  the 
second  edition  of  his  work,  and  Mengs  finally  declared  that  the  charge 
of  inaccuracy  brought  against  the  master  was,  strictly  speaking,  a  false 
one.  "It  is  true  that  he  did  not  always  select  objects  of  such  simple 
forms  as  the  ancients,  that  he  did  not  display  such  an  intimate  know- 
ledge of  anatomy  as  Michelangelo,  that  he  made  no  such  parade  of  his 
mastery  of  the  nude  as  the  Florentines.  On  the  other  hand,  he  drew 
the  objects  he  had  chosen  with  absolute  correctness,  and  in  none  of  his 
original  works   do   we  find   traces  of  hesitation  or  correction."  ^     We 

1  £e  vere  sorti,  p.  337.     Venice,  1684. 

-  Dialogo  sulla  pilliini  intitolato  rAretino,  p.  63.     \'cnicc,  1557. 

3  Opcre,  i.  p.  51.  ■*  ^'"'-  "•  !'•  i^3- 


352  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

cannot  surprise  Dolce  in  self-contradiction  of  the  same  kind.  But 
when  we  find  a  writer  of  critical  treatises  declaring  that  Correggio  was 
Giulio  Romano's  inferior  in  all  save  colour  and  charm,  we  may  safely 
disregard  his  opinion,  even  though  he  flourished  in  that  golden  age  of 
art — the  sixteenth  century.  Comment  is  superfluous,  and  we  need 
surely  institute  no  comparison  between  Correggio's  magnificent  figures 
of  the  Apostles,  and  the  contorted,  uncouth  Giants  of  the  Palazzo  del 
Te  at  Mantua. 

Here  and  there  in  his  works  it  is  certainly  possible  to  find 
defects  of  drawing,  as  in  the  Saviour's  left  arm  in  the  Coronation 
of  the  Virgin,  and  in  the  right  arm  of  the  Dan'de.  But  were  it 
the  true  function  of  criticism  to  judge  a  master,  not  by  his  work 
in  its  integrity,  but  by  microscopic  details,  none  could  hope  to 
escape  censure,  for  no  work  of  man  is  perfect,  and  it  was  only  in 
graceful  hyperbole  that  Andrea  del  Sarto  was  hailed  "  the  faultless 
painter." 

Such  censure  as  applied  to  Correggio  is  still  less  justifiable  when 
not  only  the  weakness  of  certain  details,  and  the  obscurity  of  certain 
foreshortenings  is  laid  to  his  charge,  but  when  he  is  further  reproached 
with  that  vagueness  of  contours,  and  that  freedom  of  lines  character- 
istic of  his  work,  where  there  is  no  ostentatious  display  of  anatomical 
research,  and  no  very  scrupulous  continuity  of  outline.  When,  on  the 
other  hand,  we  recognise  the  profound  knowledge  of  the  human 
body  shown  by  Correggio  ;  when  we  note  the  ease  and  originality 
that  marks  his  rendering  of  its  most  intricate  attitudes  and  move- 
ments, the  infinite  variety  he  gives  to  the  play  of  the  extremities — feet 
seen  from  every  imaginable  point  of  view,  hands  bent,  outstretched, 
folded,  or  clustering  together  with  extraordinary  diversity  of  gesture — 
we  are  lost  in  amazement,  and  turn  from  contemplation  of  his  works 
with  a  conviction  that  not  even  Michelangelo  himself  propounded  or 
solved  such  an  infinity  of  problems. 

So  great  indeed  was  the  wondering  admiration  roused  by  these 
effects,  that  a  curious  legend  sprang  up  in  connection  with  them. 

Scannelli,  who  was  the  first  to  refer  to  It,  tells  us  that  in  his  time 
it    was    commonly   reported    that   Correggio    made    use  of   small    clay 


SUPPOSED    AIDS    IN    I'ORESHOR'riCNINC  ,^5.^ 

models  suspended  above  him  to  serve  as  guides  in  the  process  of 
foreshortening.  The  story  was  repeated  from  lime  to  time,  and 
gradually  found  acceptance.  The  modeller,  whom  Scannelli  stated 
to  have  been  "a  friend,  who  was  a  skilful  worker  in  relief,"'  was 
shortly  afterwards  identil'ied  with  Antonio  Begarelli !  '-'  Ratli,  in  his 
turn,  embellished  the  tale  so  much  that  he  only  just  sto[»s  short  of 
pronouncing  Begarelli  the  real  author  of  the  frescoes  in  the  cupola  of 
the  cathedral  !  "  Of  each  figure,"  he  writes,  "  Begarelli  made  a  clay 
model  for  Correggio,  and  he  also  made  a  model  of  the  cornice  round 
the  dome  for  him,  so  that  he  might  be  able  to  observe  the  right  effects 
with  all  possible  exactness."  I'ut  even  this  was  not  enough.  Katti 
further  tells  us  that  the  painter,  Giuliano  Traballesi  (who  livt;d  from 
172;  to  I  Si  2),  "had  found  one  of  the  models  in  the  soffit  of  the 
cu[)ola  "   while  studying  at   Parma. '^ 

The  student  who  marks  Correggio's  predilection  for  perspective 
effects,  even  in  the  early  works  painted  under  the  influence  of 
Mantegna  ;  who  notes  its  gradual  development  in  the  pictures  and 
frescoes  which  preceded  his  great  undertaking  in  the  cathedral  ;  who 
perceives  that  not  one  of  the  innumerable  figures  is  a  repetition  of  the 
other,  and  above  all,  that  chiaroscuro  and  values  play  the  principal 
part  in  determining  his  effects,  can  only  wonder  that  this  absurd  fable, 
which  was  never  heard  of  till  a  century  after  the  death  of  Correggio, 
and  then  was  probably  only  advanced  by  way  of  hypothesis,  should 
have  been  so  widely  circulated,  and  should  even  have  found  accept- 
ance among  artists ! 

His  true  aids  in  resolving  the  intricate  problems  of  movement  were 
unquestionably  his  own  faculties  of  retention  and  induction.  Every 
such  problem  presented  itself  to  his  inner  vision  in  a  concrete  form, 
as  if  some  Titan  were  holding  up  the  nude  figures  before  him  with  a 
colossal  hand,  or  hurling  them  into  space  to  enable  him  to  surprise 
their  attitudes.  Here,  as  Vasari  says,  he  showed  himself  "a  won- 
derful deviser  of  all   sorts  of  difficulties."  * 


'  Miavcosiiio,  \).  275. 

2  INIengs,  ii.  pp.  140,  160.     Tiraboschi,  pp.  246,  319.     Pungileoni,  i.  pp.  157,  171- 
:,  etc.  -  Ratti,  pp.  71-72.  '    F//f ,  iv.  p.  1 1 1 . 

z  z 


354  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

The  artist  who  ideaHses,  basing  his  idealisation  on  truth,  is  what  we 
mean  by  a  genius.  In  nature,  there  are  forms  and  sounds  which  the 
mind  of  man  grasps  and  retains  with  varying  intensity.  Some  see  and 
feel  with  the  senses  alone,  and  have  no  true  comprehension  of  the 
images  that  present  themselves.  Others  have  a  certain  comprehension, 
but  forget  easily  ;  others  again,  though  they  may  not  forget,  do  not 
readily  evoke  the  images  that  lie  dormant  in  their  souls  when  they 
labour  to  reproduce  them.  It  is  only  the  highest  order  of  minds  that 
perceive  and  retain  with  equal  readiness.  All  they  see  penetrates  by 
their  senses  to  their  souls,  and  lingers  there  In  clear  and  definite  form, 
ready  to  spring  forth  at  the  call  of  the  artificer.  By  such  minds,  forms 
are  not  directly  reproduced  In  words,  nor  by  the  brush,  nor  by  musical 
notes,  as  a  photographic  camera  or  a  phonograph  might  reproduce 
them,  or.  Indeed,  as  modern  art,  intent  on  the  lay-figure,  not  un- 
frequently  does.  Images  sink  deeply  into  their  souls,  and  there, 
In  ceaseless  activity,  in  ceaseless  modification,  they  accomplish  their 
spiritual  metamorphosis. 

Criticism,  we  think,  has  hardly  ever  shown  Itself  In  a  narrower  or 
more  unworthy  form  than  in  the  theory  of  a  certain  commentator,  who 
supposed  that  Dante  observed  natural  phenomena,  and  made  notes 
of  them,  in  order  to  Introduce  them  as  similes  or  comparisons  in  the 
Divine  Comedy. 

Memories  and  images  teemed  in  Uante's  brain.  His  work  was  a 
constant  evocation  of  all  that  life  had  poured  into  his  heart.  Beethoven 
wrote  his  marvellous  Ninth  Symphony  after  he  had  become  deaf.  Its 
notes  were  not  suggested  to  him  from  without,  they  gushed  from  the 
well  of  harmony  within.  Galileo  In  his  blindness,  expounding  new 
discoveries  in  natural  laws,  moved  onward  with  unabated  energy  in  the 
paths  of  heaven. 

The  triumph  of  Correggio's  art  lies  in  this,  that  the  workings  of  his 
own  psychologic  personality  informed  the  simplest  themes  with  a  noble 
poetry,  and  that  by  their  means  he  arrived  at  the  loftiest  ideality. 

Returning  to  the  legend,  we  may  ask  what  need  our  painter  would 
have  had  of  Begarelli's  help,  if,  as  the  biographers  who  are  responsible 
for  the  fable  say,  he  himself  was  also  a  sculptor  .-*     But  the  confusion  of 


JOYOUS   CHARACTER   OF    HIS   AR'l'  355 

ideas  which  led  to  this  second  statement  is  no  more  worthy  of  atteiiiion 
than  Father  Resta's  assertion  that  Correggio  worked  as  an  architect.' 

Among  certain  of  Correggio's  devotees,  indeed,  there  seems  to 
have  been  a  disinclination  to  allow  that  he  was  a  painter  only.  They 
regretted  that  he  had  not  the  versatility  of  other  great  artists  of  the 
Renaissance,  such  as  Leon  Battista  Alberti,  Leonardo,  and  Michelangelo, 
who  distinguished  themselves  in  a  variety  of  the  arts  and  sciences. 
Correggio,  who  came  from  Nature's  hands  with  the  temperament  of  ;i 
great  painter,  followed  his  vocation  with  a  single  heart,  allowing;'  no 
extraneous  influences  to  distract  him  from  his  unity  of  purpose. 

The  predominant  sentiment  of  his  creations  is  joy.  Nevertheless, 
he  has  expressed  sorrow  and  austerity  upon  occasion  as  truthfully  as 
any  of  his  contemporaries,  in  the  agonised  contraction  of  the  sorrowing 
X^irgin's  face,  for  instance,  in  the  mournful  resignation  of  Jesus,  the 
ecstatic  faith  of  St.  Placidus,  the  inspiration  of  St.  John  the  Evangelist. 
But  he  is  more  successful  in  the  rendering  of  individual  sorrow,  than  in 
depicting  a  complex  tragedy.  A  head,  a  figure,  perhaps  even  a  small 
group,  may  bear  the  impress  of  suffering,  but  we  rarely  feel  that  the 
emotion  is  shared  by  those  around  them.  Correggio  could  not  linger 
over  mournful  subjects  ;  his  treatment  of  them  is  always  summary. 
This  is  very  noticeable  in  his  Descent  front  the  Cross  and  the 
RIartyrdoin  of  St.  Placidus,  which,  though  they  have  passages  of  great 
beauty,  are  among  the  least  satisfactory  of  the  master's  works. 

On  the  other  hand,  his  own  delighted  emotion  overflows  when  he 
can  fittingly  give  himself  up  to  the  expression  of  triumphant  life,  ol 
laughter,  of  rapture  ! 

Michelangelo,  always  grandiose  and  disdainful,  seldom  smiled  him- 
self, and  seldom  created  a  smiling  face.  When  his  statue  of  Julius  II. 
was  first  displayed,  it  was  asked  whether  he  had  intended  to  represent 
the  Pope  in  the  act  of  blessing  or  of  cursing.  Lofty  and  generous,  he 
was  saddened  by  scorn  of  the  ignoble  conflicts  which  rent  Italy  asunder, 
and  finally  destroyed  her  liberty,  leading  at  last  to  the  solemn  con- 
secration of  her  slavery  by  the  coronation  of  Charles  \'.  He  was  the 
artist  of  the  grave  and  the  sublime. 

1  .See  Mengs,  ii.  p.  140.    Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  245.    Piingilconi,  i.  !>.  177  ;  ii.  pp.  iqC),  20^>,  etc. 


356  ANTONIO   DA   CORREGGIO 

Raphael  touched  the  classic  dignity  of  his  forms  with  the  mingled 
sweetness    and     melancholy    of    his    own     angelic     character.       His 


Fr.-isment    from    the    Picta    in    the    Parma    Gallery. 


Madonnas  often  seem   to  gaze  at  the  Child  witli  infinite  sadness,  as  if 
presaging  the  mournful  end,  and  agitated  by  the  vision  of  Calvary. 


COkRlXUJO'S    '-ri"!"!'!'  557 

Leonardo,  the  darlini,r  of  Nature,  showed  a  deeper  and  nion;  varied 
range  of  fcehng'.  To  him  was  it  first  given  to  "  portray  the  joy  of 
spiritual  bliss,  the  intimate  beauty  of  the  soul."  His  heart  and  mind 
brooded  on  every  problem  of  art  and  science,  eager  to  embrace  all 
knowledge.  He  designed  buildings,  in\ented  machines,  studied  the 
operations  of  water  and  of  light,  the  structure  of  plants,  the  habits  of 
animals,  the  anatomy  of  the  human  body.  He  sought  the  beautiful  in 
all  things,  and  strove  to  reproduce  it  with  the  perfection  of  technical 
mastery.  A  great  artist,  he  divined  and  resolved  an  infinity  of  scientific 
problems,  "  the  poet  and  the  prophet  of  aesthetics  and  of  knowledge." 
The  very  universality  of  his  genius  prevented  the  concentration  of  his 
powers,  and  he  died,  leaving  a  few  pictures  of  the  highest  psychological 
and  technical  beauty,  in  which,  nevertheless,  we  miss  that  variety  of 
attitude,  and  that  full  development  of  human  expression  achieved  by 
Correggio. 

By  the  latter,  joyful  emotion  is  rendered  with  so  much  charm,  com- 
pleteness,  and  spontaneity  that  it  communicates  itself  as  if  by  magic  to 
the  spectator.  This  faculty  of  the  painter's  was  noted  so  long  ago  as 
the  sixteenth  century.  Vasari,  Annibale  Carracci,  and  Guido  Reni 
declared  that  Correggio's /?//// breathe,  live,  and  laugh  with  such  grace 
and  truth  that  we  are  compelled  to  laugh  with  them. 

The  innumerable  cherubs,  genii,  and  children  scattered  throughout 
his  works  are  the  result  of  his  delight  in  the  pictorial  expression  ol 
grace  and  happiness.  No  other  painter  has  succeeded  in  rendering 
these  little  creatures  with  such  truth  of  form  and  expression,  with  such 
a  knowledge  of  their  naive  simplicity  and  pretty  grotesqueness  of  pose, 
although,  after  his  time,  the  palaces  and  churches  of  half  Europe  were 
invaded  by  laughing  infant  hordes.  John  Addington  Symonds  writes 
as  follows  of  the  put  fi  in  the  cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista :  "Cor- 
reggio has  sprinkled  them  lavishly  like  living  flowers  about  his  cloud- 
land,  because  he  could  not  sustain  a  grave  and  solemn  strain  of  music, 
but  was  forced  by  his  temperament  to  overlay  the  melody  with  roulades. 
Gazing  at  these  frescoes,  the  thought  came  to  me  that  Correggio  was 
like   a  man    listening  to   sweetest  flute-playing,  and    translating  phrase 


3sS  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

after  phrase  as  they  passed  through  his  fancy  into  laughing  faces, 
breezy  tresses,  and  rolling  mists.  Sometimes  a  grander  cadence 
reached  his  ear  ;  and  then  St.  Peter  with  the  keys,  or  St.  Augustine 
of  the  mighty  brow,  or  the  inspired  eyes  of  .St.  John,  took  form  beneath 
his  pencil.  lUit  the  light  airs  returned,  and  rose  and  lily  bloomed  again 
for  him  among  the  clouds."  ^ 

We  have  already  noted  how  this  unbridled  expression  of  warm, 
living,  intoxicating  joy  betrayed  him  occasionally  into  that  bewildering 
multiplication  of  figures  in  violent  motion  which  characterises  his 
frescoes  in  the  cathedral.  But  even  here  we  must  accept  this  as  a 
manifestation  of  subjective  impression,  and  it  were  unjust  to  reproach 
Correggio  for  having  satisfied  his  own  spiritual  needs  and  expressed 
his  own  technical  mastery.  Michelangelo  was  guilty  of  exaggera- 
tion in  his  treatment  of  anatomical  forms,  because  he  had  become 
an  expert  in  such  treatment,  and  was  impelled  to  a  manifestation 
of  his  power.  In  Correggio's  art,  movement  played  the  same  part 
as  did  modelling  in  that  of  Buonarroti.  He  could  not  even 
refrain  from  an  excessive  application  of  it  in  the  c/iiarosniri  which 
simulated  statuary,  thus  depriving  them  of  a  proper  "  sculpturesque; 
immobility." 

Correggio's  happiest  gift  lay  in  his  power  of  rendering  grace  and 
sweetness  without  over-passing  the  exact  point  where  such  grace 
and  sweetness  degenerate  into  an  insipid  elegance.  The  robust  and 
healthy  structure  of  his  figures  saved  him  from  this  pitfall  ;  the 
vigorous  painters  of  the  Bolognese  school  showed  their  appreciation  of 
this  when  they  refused  to  allow  a  comparison  between  Parmigianino 
and  Correggio,  declaring  that  the  former  had  diverged  too  widely  from 
his  master,  by  exaggerating  his  grace  and  "impairing  his  purity  of 
attitude  and  propriety  of  pose." 

The  introduction  of  the  same  little  genii  in  his  sacred  and  profane 

subjects,  the  expression  of  happy  enjoyment  which  characterises  them 

in  both,  and  the  identity  of  their  pictorial   treatment  in   all   his   works, 

has  been   a  frequent   theme   for   censure  among  critics  of  Correggio's 

I    Skc/,ht's  in  Ihilw  p.  154.      Leipzig,  1SS3, 


art.  He  has  been  rcitroachccl  with  ha\in;^  failed  to  cinijhasise  the 
distinction  between  the  frail  oods  of  antiquity  and  tin:  saints  of  the 
new  dispensation,  and  to  have  made  the  joy  of  life  a  characteristic 
of  both. 

The  confusion  of  terms,  and  the  inherent  weakness  of  the  argument, 
are  alike  obvious. 

It  is  true  that  Correggio's  saints  display  little  depth  and  fervour  of 
religious  sentiment.  Even  in  those  early  works,  which  seem  still  to 
exhale  the  lingering  perfume  of  fifteenth-century  feeling,  we  find  few 
traces  of  the  ascetic  and  contemplative  spirit. 

The  heads  of  St.  Placidus  and  St.  Flavia  may,  perhaps,  be  quoted 
as  exceptions  to  this  rule  ;  yet  even  the  dramatic  figures  of  the  fainting 
Virgin,  the  dead  Christ,  and  certain  others,  awaken  feelings  of  sympathy 
and  pity  for  human  suffering,  rather  than  a  sense  of  adoring  veneration. 
But  we  must  not  hold  Correggio  solely  responsible  for  a  defect,  or 
rather,  for  a  sentiment,  characteristic  of  the  art  of  his  age,  which  had 
become  sensuous  and  worldly,  a  result  due  in  a  great  measure  to  its 
advance  in  technical  mastery.  He  undoubtedly  showed  a  greater 
sympathy  with  "mundane  joy"  than  other  artists;  but  he  was  by  no 
means  guilty  of  a  scandalous  innovation  in  art  !  The  severe  and 
lofty  ideality  of  Michelangelo  and  Raphael,  the  solemn  grandeur  of 
Titian  and  Tintoretto,  when  opposed  to  the  airy  simplicity,  the 
ingenuous  naturalism  of  Correggio,  seem  to  convict  the  latter  ol  an 
excessive  humanisation  of  his  themes,  whereas  all  the  artistic  forces  of 
his  age  combined  to  materialise  Christianity.  Nevertheless,  il  Cor- 
reggio, in  his  catholic  choice  of  subjects,  shows  less  susceptibility  even 
than  the  majority  of  his  contemporaries  to  Christian  sentiment,  it 
cannot  truthfully  be  laid  to  his  charge  that  he  showed  no  sense  of 
appropriate  expression,  and  that  his  X'irgins  are  scarcely  distinguishable 
from  his  nymphs.  There  is  nothing  in  common  between  the  chaste 
smile  of  his  .S7.  Jerome  Madonna  and  the  sensual  satisfaction  of  his 
Daiuic,  between  the  gentle  weariness  of  the  Ziugarclla  and  the 
voluptuous  slumber  of  the  Aiiliopc.  The  difference  is  sharply  defined, 
denied  though   it   may  be   by  those   who   turn  from  contemplation  of 


36o  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

his  intoxicated  pagan  divinities  to  his  Madonnas,  scekinLj;  in  tlic 
latter,  nut  the  sweet  and  tender  mother,  but  the  mystic  and  exaked 
creature,'  and  raising  the  unprofitable  question  of  the  moral  functions 
of  art. 

Art  is,  above  all  things,  form  ;  the  sensuality  which  is  made  a 
reproach  to  certain  painters,  and  the  spirituality  for  which  others  are 
praised,  are  in  many  cases  merely  the  result  of  pictorial  type  and 
technique.  What  innumerable  pecans  have  been  raised  to  the  pure 
and  mystic  sentiment  of  the  Pre-Raphaelites  !  It  was  long  before 
it  was  admitted  that  this  sentiment  was  largely  due  to  the  forms  and 
colour  of  Giotto  and  his  disciples. 

Unable  as  yet  to  render  the  varied  movements  of  the  human  body 
with  that  ease  and  mastery  displayed  by  the  great  painters  of  the 
Renaissance,  infant  art  was  compelled  by  its  inexperience  to  preserve 
an  ideal  calm  in  the  rendering  of  figures,  and  to  give  an  expression 
of  religious  intentness  to  its  so-called   "choral  masses." 

To  later  artists,  from  Masaccio  onwards,  the  portrayal  of  two 
precisely  similar  figures  would  have  appeared  an  evidence  of  Inferior 
ability  and  poverty  of  imagination.  Giotto  and  his  scholars,  on  the 
other  hand,  did  not  hesitate  to  represent  some  hundred  persons  all 
turned  In  the  same  direction,  and  with  arms  extended  or  laid 
together  in  the  same  manner.  Their  draperies  do  not  follow  the 
lines  of  the  body,  and  hence  it  seems  as  if  there  were  no  limbs 
concealed  beneath  the  folds.  This  gives  their  figures  an  unearthly 
appearance,  as  If  they  had  alighted  for  a  moment,  pausing  In  some 
aerial  llight,  and  ready  to  mount  again  at  the  first  sign  from 
heaven. 

Their  almond  eyes,  which  have  no  transparency,  no  luminous 
gleam  to  Indicate  lustre  and  convexity,  seem  to  be  mirrors  of  pro- 
found abstraction,  In  which  faith  has  quenched  all  traces  of  human 
desire,  while  the  pallor  of  the  carnations,  which  results  from  glazes  laid 
on  over  a  green  ground,  seems  to  hint  at  suffering  and  self-denial, 
rigorous  fasts,  long  nights  si)ent  in  prayer  and  meditation. 
'   " 'i'cnn  by  tlic  eternal  cuunscl  pre-ordained.' 


rRIMITIVl'.    SF.NTIMF.XT    I\    ART  ./u 

If  therefore  ihe  an  of  ihe  fourleenlh  century  appeared  to  be 
mystical  in  its  tendencies,  because  of  the  imperfect  means  of  (ex- 
pression at  its  command,  it  is  only  natural  that  tlic  art  which  had 
obtained  an  absolute  mastery  of  form  and  (>xprf-ssion  should  seem 
worldly  and  material. 

No  figure  created  by  an   .artist  of  the    Renaissance  was   likely  to 


the  Borghcse   Gallery, 


be  accepted  as  a  miraculous  image  by  the  populace.  Byzantines  and 
fourteenth-century  effigies  were  readily  accounted  of  supernatural 
origin  by  the  mass  of  the  de\-out.  Their  very  ugliness  and  want  of 
objective  truth  were  their  best  recommendations.  They  seemed  the 
more  marvellous  to  the  credulous  the  more  they  diverged  from  reality, 
from    the  normal  types  of  men   and    women.      Many  perceive  super- 


362  ANTONIO    DA    OORREGGIO 

human  qualities  where  humanity  is  lacking,  and  discern  the  divine  in 
the  unnatural. 

Not  one  of  the  fair  and  blooming  Madonnas  of  the  Renaissance, 
with  their  sweet  and  smiling  humanity,  least  of  all  those  painted  by 
Correggio,  received  a  tithe  of  the  devout  gifts  and  prayers  lavished  on 
some  dry,  angular  Byzantine  figure,  or  some  pallid  and  sleepy  Virgin 
of  the  fourteenth  century. 

How  indeed  is  it  to  be  supposed  that  such  creations  as  the 
JMadomia  dclla  Scodclla,  or  the  Madonna  with  St.  George,  should 
awaken  that  sense  of  melancholy  proper  to  spiritual  peace  .''  They  are 
but  fair  and  graceful  women,  loving  mothers,  caressing  their  children, 
and  smiling  at  their  gambols,  full  of  life  and  health  and  joy.  Their 
faces  bear  no  traces  of  suffering  and  privation  ;  they  glow,  as  Vasari 
says,  as  if  t/ic  brush  had  laid  on  living  flesh.  Artists  will  worship 
their  beauty,  but  just  as  he  is  untouched  by  the  sight  of  young  and 
loving  womanhood,  the  ascetic  remains  cold  before  these  pictures, 
which  recall  some  familiar  domestic  scene. 

This  tendency,  which  is  common  to  all  the  artists  of  the  Renaissance, 
is  more  apparent  perhaps  in  Correggio  than  in  any  other,  owing  to  the 
geniality  of  his  types,  and  the  joyous  character  of  his  sentiment  and 
technique  ;  but  his  art,  as  was  inevitable,  reflected  the  impressions  and 
responded  to  the  demands  of  the  age  in  which  he  lived,  working  out 
its  natural  and  logical  development.  We  think  it  is  time  to  abandon 
once  for  all  the  idea  of  art  as  one  of  the  various  manifestations  of 
free  will,  due  entirely  to  personal  initiative  ;  rather  ought  we  to  look 
upon  it  as  an  involuntary  growth  or  blossom  of  the  human  mind,  which, 
like  the  earth  itself,  has  its  appointed  seasons. 

The  study  of  forms  and  pictorial  types  should  precede  that  of 
sentiment,  to  enable  us  to  judge  how  far  the  latter  is  an  emanation  from 
the  former,  a  spontaneous  result  which  the  artist  has  produced  without 
conscious  effort. 

Correggio's  facial  type,  his  drawing,  the  magic  of  his  colour, 
humanised  his  sacred  subjects  on  the  one  hand,  while,  on  the  other, 
they  gave  a  spirituality  to  the  grossness  of  pagan  themes. 


CORREGGIO    COMPARED    WITH    LEONARDO  363 

It  must  be  admitted  that  as  compared  with  Correggio's,  Titian's 
pagan  nudities  are  ahnost  vulgar  in  their  abundant  development  and 
vigorous  warmth  of  colour. 

Correggio,  on  the  other  hand,  while  expressing  all  the  intoxication 
of  love  and  pleasure  in  the  smiles  and  movements  of  his  figures,  is  yet 
able  to  suggest  a  sensuality  without  corruption,  dematerialised,  so  to 
speak.  The  youthful  sweetness  of  their  faces,  the  ingenuous  grace  of 
their  attitudes,  the  virginal  litheness  of  their  figures,  the  .soft  and  deli- 
cate tones  of  their  carnations,  make  us  accept  his  lo,  his  Daniie,  his 
Leda,  as  innocent  maidens,  surprised  into  a  first  manifestation  of  frailty. 

Burckhardt  declares  that  as  regards  mere  technique,  Correggio 
may  be  taken  to  represent  the  last  and  highest  development  of  Italian 
painting. 

The  process  in  which  his  master)-  is  most  complete  is  the  treatment 
of  chiaroscuro,  the  difficulties  of  which  engrossed  so  many  artists  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  without  any  very  marked  result  save  in  the  cases  of 
Leonardo  and  Giorgione.  Leonardo,  in  the  gradation  of  his  tones,  a 
o-radation  almost  imperceptible  owing  to  their  marvellous  fusion,  was  in 
danger  of  overlooking  the  very  essence  of  painting  ;  according  to  him, 
decision  of  outline  was  no  longer  necessary  for  the  modelling  of  surfaces 
in  relief  He  too  attempted  to  render  the  play  of  refiected  light,  but 
it  was  reserved  to  Correggio  to  introduce  chiaroscuro  even  in  his 
shadows,  thus  achieving  a  transparency  of  effect  which  is  wanting  in 
the  works  of  his  great  predecessors,  as  in  those  of  his  subsequent 
imitators.  After  him,  strong  contrasts  of  light  and  shade  came  sud- 
denly into  vogue,  and  his  successors  lost  the  secret  of  that  exquisite 
truth  of  tones  in  shadow  which  he  had  achieved.  With  what  delicate 
gradations  he  often  obtained  his  effects  of  relief  may  be  seen  if  we 
examine  some  of  the  tints  he  used  in  shadow,  tints  which  in  the  chro- 
matic scale  of  other  great  artists  (Leonardo  and  Raphael,  for  instance) 
only  appear  in  the  illuminated  passages.  Yet  it  is  to  this  very  half-light 
that  the  superficial  grace  of  the  human  body  is  mainly  due.^ 

1  To  judge  of  the  degree  of  perfection  attained  by  Correggio  in  the  treatment  of 
penumbra    and    reflections,    the    visitor    to    the    Dresden    Gallery   sliould    compare    tlie 


364  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

Thanks  to  his  masterly  use  of  chiaroscuro  in  all  its  gradations,  and 
his  avoidance  of  violent  contrasts  of  light  and  shadow,  he  achieved 
the  most  extraordinary  force  of  colour  by  successive  glazings.  Light 
was  thus  diffused  among  the  figures  and  objects  he  painted,  pene- 
trating to  the  subordinate  parts  of  the  composition,  and  producing  so 
novel  and  perfect  an  illusion  that  all  the  forms  he  represented  seem 
actually  to  move  in  space. 

Early  biographers  and  writers  of  treatises,  though  they  overlook 
these  special  qualities,  are  loud  in  their  praises  of  his  colour  and  his 
use  of  the  brush.  Vasari  first  asserted  that  "no  one  excelled  him  in 
laying  on  colour,  and  no  artist  painted  with  greater  beauty  and  relief; 
such  was  the  mellow  quality  of  his  Oesh-tones,  and  the  grace  with 
which  he  finished  his  works."  Lomazzo,  in  a  phrase  which  greatly 
impressed  Domenichino,  said  he  who  wished  to  possess  two  pictures 
of  the  highest  perfection  should  have  had  an  Adam  drawn  by  Michel- 
angelo and  painted  by  Titian,  and  an  Eve  drawn  by  Raphael  and 
painted  by  Correggio.  He  adds  that  these  pictures  would  have  been 
the  finest  ever  known  in  the  world. ^  The  opinion  is  debatable,  but  it 
proves  that  towards  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century  our  painter  was 
accounted  the  most  superb  of  colourists.  Shortly  afterwards,  Baldinucci 
speaks  of  his  tints  as  marvellous,  melting,  laid  on  as  if  i^'ith  vapoia:- 
Nor  has  there  been  occasion  to  modify  this  opinion  in  any  successive 
school  of  criticism. 

Some  of  Correggio's  characteristics  of  st\le  reappear  in  the  works 
of  other  artists  of  Upper  Italy.  Lanzi  very  justly  remarked  that  he 
had  certain  affinities  with  Giorgionc,"'  who,  by  the  inevitable  law  of 
artistic  evolution,  was  following  in  the  steps  of  Leonardo.  But  in  senti- 
ment and  colour,  Correggio  was  more  closely  allied  to  Lorenzo  Lotto. 
It  has  been  suggested  that  Lotto  was  first  a  pupil  of  Leonardo,  and 

Madonna  K<ith  St.  George  and  the  Madonna  di  San  Sisto,  Raphael's  most  perfect  work, 
and  one  of  the  most  marvellous  pictures  in  the  world  in  ideality  and  execution.  The 
shadows  on  the  carnations,  especially  in  the  hands  and  feet  of  Raphael's  Virgin,  seem 
opaque  and  almost  sooty  in  comparison  with  those  of  Correggio's  flesh-tints. 

1  Idea  del  tcmpio  della  piitiira,  chap,  xviii.     Bottari,  ii.  p.  393. 

"  Rottari,  ii.  p.  521.  "■  Op/et  he.  cit. 


HIS     lECHNIfAI.    MF/l'IIODS  365 

that  he  afterwards  imitated  Correggio.  But  here  again  we  think  the 
affinities  are  merely  accidental,  or,  to  be  more  exact,  that  they  were 
the  independent  results  of  social  conditions  and  of  the  development 
of  artistic  expression^  ?»T<M-clli  adds  that  it  was  Correggio's  enviable 
lot  to  draw  from  the  chords  first  struck  by  Leonardo,  Giorgionc,  and 
Lorenzo   Lotto  the  sweetest  and  most  complete  harmony  .'- 

The  sparkling  effect  of  his  lights  gave  rise  to  all  sorts  of  odtl 
suspicions  among  the  turbid  colourists  of  the  baroqitc  period,  as  to 
the  supposed  preparation  of  the  panels  on  which  he  painted.  A 
variety  of  legends  bearing  on  his  technical  methods  were  current  in 
the  eighteenth  century.  Richardson,  among  others,  declared  that 
Correggio  painted  on  a  gold  ground,"  and  an  artist  admitted  to 
Lanzi  that  he  believed  "  Correggio  habitually  exposed  his  pictures 
to  the  heat  of  the  fire,  or  to  the  sun,  in  order  to  blend  his  colours 
well  together  and  diffuse  them  equall)-,  which  process  had  given  them 
the  appearance  of  having  been  melted  together,  rather  than  laid  on 
with   the  brush." 

The  ground  on  which  Correggio  painted  was  compounded,  as  a 
fact,  u{  i^csso,  boiled  oil,  and  varnish,  and  in  no  wise  differed  from  that 
in  common  use  among  other  careful  masters  of  his  lime.  Nor  was 
there  anything  unusual  in  the  plaster  preparation  on  which  he  paintetl 
his  frescoes.  His  use  of  the  brush  was  marvellously  delicate,  both 
in  his  great  works  and  in  small  jjictures.  Mis  tones  were  oI)tained 
by  building  up  successive  layers  of  colour,  or  glazes,  which  enabled 
him  to  correct  his  drawing  as  he  paintetl.  His  aversion  to  everything 
which  tended  to  make  his  colour  dense  and  opaque  was  so  strong,  that 
he  preferred  to  leave  the  traces  of  corrections  perfectly  apparent,  as 
we  notice  in  the  uplifted  finger  of  Christ's  right  hand  in  the  Descent 


'  Bernard  Berenson,  Lonnzo  Lotto,  p.  325.      London,  1S95. 

'-  Italian  Painters,  ii.  ji.  153. 

2  Pungileoni,  i.  p.  20  ;  ii.  p.  35.  Certain  argentine  reflections  in  his  pictures  suggested 
to  impressionable  critics  the  use  of  the  term  sidereal  to  describe  Correggio's  light.  Others 
found  the  phrase  too  vague,  and  endeavoured  to  define  the  effect  more  closely  by 
christening  it  crepusdilar.  The  two  adjectives  were  well  received,  and  mo\-cd  the  souls 
of  the  cesthetes  who  find  in  impressions  a  fertile  field  for  chatter  of  this  class. 


3(>6  ANTONIO    DA    CORRRGC^IO 

/ro///  the  Cross,  and  in  the  shortened  finger  of  St.  Jerome's  left 
hand. 

A  painter  before  all  things,  it  is  evident  that  he  not  only  corrected 
with  his  brush,  but  that  he  made  a  free  use  of  it  in  drawing.  Innumer- 
able details  in  his  pictures,  more  especially  the  extremities,  are  rendered 
entirely  by  gradations  of  colour,  and  show  no  trace  of  definite  outline. 
This  method,  a  most  dangerous  one  in  the  hands  of  a  mediocre  artist, 
produced  the  most  mellow  and  enchanting  results  under  the  direction 
of  his  genius.  Scannelli  is  impatient  of  Vasari's  habit  of  dilating  on 
minutia;,  but  there  is  reason  in  the  biographer's  thrice-repeated  admi- 
ration of  the  manner  in  which  Correggio  painted  hair  :  "so  beautiful  in 
colour,  and  so  exquisitely  rendered,  thread  by  thread,  that  nothing 
better  can  be  seen,"  and  "  a  perfect  lesson  in  the  art  of  treating  it." 
Thus  says  the  biographer,  while  in  the  Proem  to  the  third  part  of 
his  Lives,  he  had  already  written  :  "  It  would  be  impossible  to  describe 
the  exquisite  vivacity  of  his  works,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  treated 
hair  thread  by  thread,  not  in  the  elaborate  manner  of  his  predecessors, 
which  was  dry,  laborious,  and  metallic,  but  with  a  feathery  softness, 
noting  the  strands,  and  rendering  them  with  such  facility  that  they 
seemed  to  be  of  gold,  and  mure  beautiful  than  real  tresses,  which  could 
not  compare  with  them  for  colour."  '  But  we  need  .say  no  more.  To 
dwell  any  longer  on  Correggio's  characteristics  would  be  only  to  repeat 
much  that  has  already  been  noted  in  describing  his  various  pictures, 
and  would  be  of  little  service  to  the  reader,  familiar,  no  doubt,  with 
some  of  his  works,  and  further  al)le  to  judge  of  them  to  some  extent 
from  the    reproductions  in   this  volume. 

We  have  endeavoured  not  to  allow  ourselves  to  be  carried  away 
by  love  of  our  subject,  scrupulously  recording  all  that  has  been 
said  both  for  and  against  Correggio,  though  the  critic  is  often 
tempted  to  become  the  panegyrist  before  the  works  of  a  genius  so 
individual  as  to  justify  the  well-known  phrase,  "  the  Correggiosity  of 
Correggio." 

Even  those  least  disposed  to  admire  his  forms,  the  rigid  devotees 
'   \V)1.  iv.  pp.  12,   115,  1 19. 


1NM)I\'I1)UALI  TV    Ol'    HIS    CFNTUS  ;/,7 

of  Florentine  dignity  and  correctncjss,  cannot  hut  admit  the  fascination 
that  breathes  from  a  thousand  lovely  cn^ations,  moving  and  smiling  in 
the  effulgent  light  of  morning  and  spring. 

This  is  the  "  demoniac  power,"  as  Goethe  calls  it,  which  ink)rms 
the  work  of  the  great  creative  genius.  The  magic  of  form,  the  in- 
toxication of  movement  and  sentiment,  awak(>n  an  emotion  against 
which  reason  and  criticism  are  alike  powerless.  All  defects  are  for- 
gotten, and,  filled  with  wondering  admiration,  we  recognise  the  artist's 
greatness  in  our  own  sense  of  delighted  enjoyment. 


^s^^^^^ 

'">*'  .   ~%^ 


CHAPTER   XVI 

CORREGCIO'S    I'UriLS    AXl)    IMITATORS 

I-RANCESCO    MARIA    KONDAN  I  — MICHIiLANGELO     AXSLI.MI  — PARMIGIANINO — GIROLA.MO 
MAZZOLA-BEDOLI  — GIORGIO    GANDIXO    DIX    GRANO — DERNARDINO    GATTI,    CALLED    "  IL 

SOIARO" — LELIO     ORSI     OF     NOVELLARA — GIOVANNI     GIAROLA POMPONIO    ALLEGRI  — 

ADMIRERS    AND    IMITATORS — THE    CARRACCI — CORREGGIO's    FAME. 


IN  our  study  of  Correggio 
we  have  tried  to  paint  the 
society  by  which  he  was 
surrounded,  and  the  events  of 
which  he  was  a  witness.  But  so 
far  we  have  only  casually  men- 
tioned his  pupils,  and  those  artists 
who  were  most  strongly  influ- 
enced by  him. 

Allegri's  sojourn  in  Parma 
was  the  immediate  cause  of  an 
artistic  evolution,  which  has 
scarcely  been  appreciated  at  its 
true  importance.     A  band  of  en- 


CORREGGIO'S    INFLUENCE    IN    PARMA  369 

thusiastic  youncr  men  followed  in  his  footsteps,  producing  works  of 
considerable  merit,  which  sufficiently  refute  the  assertion  that  Correggio 
founded  no  school. 

We  have  followed  the  histor>-  of  painting  In  Parma  down  to  about 
the  year  1520.  \Y(;  have  seen  that  it  was  first  a  modest  offshoot  of 
the  school  of  Cremona,  and  that  Venetian  and  Bolonnesc  inllucmccs 
invested  it  with  a  certain  beauty  and  animation,  under  the  impulse  of 
which  it  produced  works  not  wanting  in  dignity  and  earnestness,  but 
at  the  same  time  of  a  purely  imitative  character. 

Early  art  in  Parma  was,  in  fact,  no  product  of  indigenous  taste  and 
knowledge,  but  an  importation  of  ideas  and  formulx-,  derived  not  merely 
from  without  the  city,  but  from  without  the  territory  in  which  it  lay. 

We  have  shown  what  must  have  been  the  impression  produced  by 
the  works  of  the  young  artist  of  twenty-four  from  Correggio,  who 
painted  the  Abbess  Giovanna's  chamber.  Tcmperelli,  Araldi,  and  the 
elder  Mazzoli  undertook  no  more  great  works,  and  their  disciples,  even 
such  as  were  connected  with  them  by  ties  of  kinship,  deserted  them, 
and  gave  themselves  up  to  contemplation  of  the  radiant  creations  of 
the  new  genius. 

From  about  15 18  several  young  Parmese  artists  had  studied  in  the 
old  schools,  modestly  satisfied  with  the  results  if  they  succeeded  in 
adding  a  little  beauty  to  the  forms,  a  little  animation  to  the  colour,  of 
their  masters.  Girolamo  IMazzola-Bedoli,  Giorgio  Gandino  del  Grano, 
Francesco  Maria  Rondani,  Parmigianino,  and  others,  all  more  or 
less  of  the  same  age  as  Antonio,  with  one  accord  abandoned  their 
former  teachers  to  enrol  themselves  as  his  disciples,  with  the  earnest 
enthusiasm  of  youth  and  faith.     Incipit  vita  nova. 

None  of  these,  with  the  exception  of  Francesco  Mazzola,  achieved 
any  great  distinction.  Their  works  are  to  be  met  with  in  most  of  the 
European  galleries,  either  pompously  ascribed  to  Allegri  or  Parmi- 
gianino, or,  more  cautiously,  to  the  school  of  Parma. 

Hence  their  history  is  almost  unknown  ;  the  sketches  of  their 
lives  hitherto  given  teem  with  mistakes  and  inaccuracies,  which 
we  will  endeavour  briefly  to  correct  by  the  help  of  contemporary 
documents. 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


We  have  seen  that  Rondani  was  the  one  who  seems  to  have  been 
most  closely  connected  with  the  master,  acting  as  his  assistant  in 
several  of  his  works.  He  was  born  at  Parma  in  1490,  and  was  there- 
fore several  years  older  than  Correggio.     It  has  been  asserted,  on  what 

evidence  we  know- 
not,  that  he  died  in 
1548.  He  was  cer- 
tainly living  at  the 
end  of  November 
of  that  year.  He 
is  first  mentioned, 
jointly  with  his 
brothers,  in  a  will 
.  dated  1 504  ;  he 
then  appears  as 
witness  to  a  deed 
of  1 512,  but  he  is 
not  described  as 
master  nor  as 
painter.  He  after- 
wards worked  on 
the  decorations  at 
Torchiara,  and  in 
San  Giovanni 
Evangelista,  where 
he  painted  the 
frieze  designed   by 


he  was  commis- 
sioned by  the  Chapter  ot  the  cathedral  to  decorate  a  portion  of  the 
transept,  but  he  never  carried  out  this  work.  Two  years  later  he 
painted  several  scutcheons  in  the  governor's  palace.  He  then  worked 
for  the  Benedictines,  decorating  the  cloister  of  the  novices  with  scenes 
from  the  life  of  their  patron  saint ;  he  also  painted  some  frescoes  in 
the  refectory,  and  decorated  the  soffits  of  one  of  the  chapels  of  their 


I'RAXfESfO    MARIA    ROXDANI 


church.      Ik'tvvcfn  1527  and   1531  he;  iVcsccMal  ihc  walls  of  the;  Ccnloni 
chaiK'l  in  ihr  cathnlral  ;   he  subscqiicnlly  worked  in  the  church  of  Sani' 
Alcssandro,  and  collaborated   with  Anselnii  in   the  decorations  of  the 
vault   of  the  Oratorio  della  Concczione   in   San  Francesco.      \'erv  few 
of  his   easel   pictiu-es   ha\c  survived.     Some   of  these   he   signed   with 
his   name,  on   others 
he  painted  the  three 
swallows  of  his  coat 
of    arms.       He    fol- 
lowed      Correggio's 
manner  as  closely  as 
he     could,     but     his 
drawing       is      often 
coarse,  and  his  exe- 
cution slovenly.    His 
works     have,     how- 
ever, a  certain  viva- 
city   of    colour    and 
breadth  of  composi- 
tion, and  in  his  land- 
scape     backgrounds 
he    shows    a    talent 
certainly    above    the 
average.^      He   was, 
however,  greatly   in- 
ferior, not  only  to  his 
master,  but  to  Michel- 
angelo Anselmi,  who  ,„  ,|,^.  j,-,pie,  Mu.:um. 
had  had  the  advan- 
tage of  an  early  training  in  the  Tuscan  school.   (Sec  illustration  on  p.  367.) 


'  The  materials  for  the  notices  of  artists  given  in  this  chapter  arc  mainly  taken  from 
the  valuable  unpublished  extracts  from  contemporary  documents  made  by  E.  Scarabelli- 
Zunti  (now  in  the  Royal  Museum  of  Parma),  to  which  we  have  before  referred.  .See  also 
Romualdo  '&s:\%X.xocc\\\,  Notizic  dei  pi f tori  che  hivorarono  in  Parma,  MS.,  and  Bertoluzzi, 
Descrizione  della  cappella  dclla  Concezione,  MS.  {Miscellanea,  no.  1106,  in  the  J'alatinc 
T.ibrary,  Parma). 


372  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGCHO 

Anselmi  was  bom  in  1491  at  Lucca,  whertt  his  father,  a  native  of 
Parma,  was  living  in  exile.  From  Lucca  he  removed  with  his  family 
to  Siena,  about  1500.  At  Siena  ho  entered  Sodoma's  studio,  remaining 
in  the  city  after  his  father  was  permitted  to  return  to  Parma  in  1505. 
There  is  a  Visitation  of  little  beauty  at  Siena,  painted  by  him  for  the 
Confraieniita  di  Fontc  Giitsta.  In  reference  to  his  long  sojourn  in 
Siena,  he  was  known  as  Michelangelo  Senese.  The  first  documents 
in  which  his  name  occurs  are  dated  April,  1520.  They  speak  of  him 
as  a  citizen  of  Parma,  and  deal  with  a  donation  made  to  him  by 
his  uncle,  Francesco  Anselmi,  and  with  the  dowry  of  his  bride,  one 
Ippolita  Gaibazzi.  The  influence  of  Correggio's  genius  is  very  appar- 
ent in  his  art.  Among  his  first  works  at  Parma  were  the  arabesques 
on  the  vaulting  of  the  nave  in  San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  e.xecuted, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  under  Correggio's  direction.  From  this  time 
forward  he  worked  indefatigably  ;  nearly  all  the  principal  churches  of 
Parma  contain  pictures  or  frescoes  by  him,  and  there  are  examples 
of  his  work  in  many  Italian  and  foreign  galleries.  In  153S-39  he  was 
at  Busseto,  where  he  decorated  the  Cappella  della  Concezione  of  the 
principal  church  with  frescoes.  Gave  published  a  petition  addressed  by 
him  to  the  Signoria  of  .Siena  in  1544,  from  which  it  appears  that  he  was 
known  by  the  nickname  of  Sialalirino  (mad-cap).  It  has  been  suggested 
that  the  petitioner  was  a  namesake,  but  it  seems  not  improbable  that 
he  should  have  returned  to  try  his  luck  in  the  place  where  his  youth 
had  been  spent.  In  the  document  he  calls  himself  Michelangelo,  alias 
Scalabrino.  It  is  further  to  be  noted  that  in  the  sequence  of  Parmesan 
documents  in  which  he  is  mentioned,  there  is  a  gap  between  1542  and 
1546.  He  returned  to  Parma,  and  died  there  in  1554.  He  was  one 
of  the  most  gifted  of  Correggio's  pupils,  perhaps,  indeed,  the  most 
gifted.  His  works  have  a  pleasing  animation  ;  the  colour  is  warm  and 
luminous,  the  drawing  careful  and  refined.  Sometimes,  however,  there 
is  an  appearance  of  exaggerated  movement  and  contortion  in  his 
figures,  and  in  the  multitudinous  folds  of  their  complicated  draperies.^ 
{See  illustration  on  p.  347.) 

'  Baistrocchi  and  Rertoluzzi,  documents  in  the  Palatine  l-ibrary,  already  cjuoted. 
O.  Claye,  Carteggio  iuedito  d'  nrtisti  dci  sccoli,  \iv.  xv.  (  xvi.,  ii.  ]>.  325.  Florenrc,  1S39. 
Meyer,  Attgemeines  Kinistla-fAwikoii,  ii.  p.  86.      I,ei|izi_u',  1.S70. 


PARMICIAMXO 


These  two  painu:i-s,  Roiul.mi  aiul  Ans<;lini.  were  the  only  ones 
among  his  pupils  wliom  Corn'goio  employed  as  his  assistants,  and 
to    whom    he   confkh^d  the   minor    di'tails   of  his   works. 

Among  the  many  otliers  who  formed  their  style  und(!r  his  inlluence, 
the  most  famous  is  Francesco  Mazzola,  called  Parmi-ianino,  I^orn  in 
Parma,  January,  1503.  His  father,  Filippo,  died  when  he  was  only 
two  years  old,  and  he  afterwards  learnt  the  elements  of  drawing  and 
painting  in  the  studio  of  his  uncles,  Pier  Ilario  and  Michele  Mazzola. 
He  may  therefore  be  quoted  as  one  of  the  innumerable  examples  of 
"artistic  heredity."  His  natural  aptitudes  were  exceptional,  and  at 
the  age  of  sixteen  he  painted  a 
Baptism  of  C/n-is/,  which  has 
tlisappeared.  Just  at  this  critical 
juncture,  Allegri  appeared  in 
Parma,  and  determined  the  future 
course  of  the  youthful  prodigy. 
Parmigianino's  talent  has,  how- 
ever, a  personal  note  which  makes 
it  impossible  to  consider  him 
merely  as  the  pupil  or  imitator  of 
Correggio.  His  frescoes  on  the 
soffits  in  San  Giovanni  Evangel- 
ista,  some  of  which  are  still  in  ad- 
mirable condition,  date  from  i  522,  '  I„  ,|!c  UIT,/i  (bllerv 
and    were    painted    immediately 

after  his  return  from  Viadana,  whither  his  parents  had  sent  him  that  he 
might  be  safe  from  those  perils  of  war  we  have  described.  He  engaged 
to  paint  one  of  the  bays  of  the  cathedral  ;  but  as  the  preliminaries  of 
this  undertaking  were  not  carried  out  with  sufficient  expedition  by 
the  churchwardens,  his  impatience  to  go  to  Rome  and  see  the  works  of 
Raphael  and  Michelangelo,  tlelermined  him  to  resign  the  commission. 
He  left  Parma  in  1523,  carrying  with  him  sampk's  of  his  works  to 
submit  to  Clement  VH.,  who  hatl  jusl  been  elected  Pope.  He  re- 
mained some  years  in  Rome,  where  he  was  largely  employed  and 
patronised.       He    is    said    to    ha\-e    been    extremely    handsome,    and 


374  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

there  is  a  tradition  that  he   found    favour  with   the   famous   courtesan, 
Antea. 

The  perils  of  the  terrible  sack  in  1527  forced  him  to  take  his 
departure.  Vasari  relates  that  he  barely  escaped  with  his  life,  "  inas- 
much as,  at  the  beginning  of  the  sack,  he  w-as  so  intent  on  his  work, 
that  when  the  soldiers  began  to  enter  the  houses,  and  some  Germans 
were  already  in  his  own,  he  was  not  distracted  by  the  tumult  ;  when, 
however,  the  soldiers  came  upon  him,  and  saw  him  painting,  they  were 


so  astonished  at  his  work,  that,  like   good    fellows  as   they   must  have 
been,  they  allowed  him  to  continue  it." 

On  his  way  back,  he  halted  at  Bologna,  where  he  painted  several 
pictures.  After  the  coronation  of  Charles  V..  whose  portrait  he  painted, 
he  returned  to  Parma.  In  1531  he  undertook  to  decorate  the  vault  of  the 
presbytery  and  of  the  apse,  and  the  dome  of  the  Stciccata  ;  but  he  worked 
slowly  and  fitfully,  distracted  Ijy  his  impatient  temper,  and  by  his  absorp- 
tion in  the  mysteries  of  alchemy.  Hence  arose  many  disputes  between 
the  artist  and  the  guardians  of  the  church.       Piqued  and  angry,  heat  last 


PARMIOIANIXO 


left  Parma  in  dudgeon.  1 1  was  then  that  he  became  the  guest  of  Sanvitale 
at  the  Castle  of  l'"onlaiiellato,  whrrc  he:  painted  the  vault  of  a  small 
room  with  scenes  from  the  legend  of  Diana  and  Actceon.  In  1535  he- 
renewed  his  agreement  for  the  decorations  in  the  Steccata,  and  began 
to  work  there.  But  fresh  causes  of  quarrel  soon  arose,  and  neither 
concessions,  nor  the  friend- 
ly interposition  of  out- 
siders, availed  to  recall 
him  to  a  sense  of  his  ob- 
ligations. He  therefore 
painted  only  a  few  figures 
of  the  great  work  he 
had  undertaken — Moses, 
Aaron,  Adam,  Eve,  and 
the  Wise  Virgins.  Furious 
at  the  threats  of  the  war- 
dens, and  perhaps  doubt- 
ful of  his  own  ability  to 
carry  out  a  vast  scheuK: 
of  decoration  which  might 
bear  comparison  with  the 
two  cupolas  painted  liy 
Correggio,  he  retired,  al- 
most as  a  fugiti\'e,  to 
Casalmaggiore,  where  he 
died  after  a  brief  illness 
at  the  early  age  of  thirty- 
seven.  ^  ,„  „,,  ^.,p|„  M,,,.„„, 

He    has    been    justly 

accused  of  painting  figures   of    abnormal   length,   and   of  an    affected 

and    effeminate    type.       Albani    described    him    as     "  intent    on    the 

manufacture  of  nymphs.'      It    is,    however,    impossible    to    deny    his 

1  \'asari,  V.  [>.  217  d  St\/.  Baistrocchi,  Notizic  dci piltori.  Affo,  Vita  del grazwsissiino 
pittore  Francesco  Mazzola,  detto  I'l  Fannigianitio.  Parma,  1784.  Sketches  of  the  Lives  of 
Correggio  and  Parviigiano,  p.  221  et  seq.  London,  1823.  Luigi  Sanvitale,  Memorie 
ntortio  alia  Rocca  di  Fontanel lato.  Panna,  1857.  A.  Konchini,  La  Steccata  di  Parma, 
■np.  cit.     E.  Faelli,  Bihlingrafia  mazzoliana.     Parma.  1884. 


376 


ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 


rai(;  ability  as  a  draughtsman, 
which  Paolo  Veronese  eulogised, 
his  pleasing  choice  of  types, 
and  the  cheerful  \ivacity  of  his 
colour.  His  draperies,  which  he 
copied  from  antique  models,  are 
airy  and  graceful.  His  numerous 
portraits  are  superb,  full  at  once 
of  dignity  and  of  nature.  {Sec 
illustration  on  p.  348.) 

Girolamo  Bedoli,  whose  family 
came  from  Bedulla,  in  the  commune 
of  Viadana,  married  Caterina  Elena, 
daughter  of  Pier  Ilario  Mazzola, 
in  1529.  By  this  union  he  entered 
into  such  close  relations  with  the 
Mazzola  family,  working  for  and 
with  them,  that  he  adopted  their 
surname  as  a  prefix  to  his  own. 
A  large  number  of  pictures  by  this 
excellent  and  prolific  painter  are 
to  be  found  in  Parma,  and  in 
other  cities,  both  in  Italy  and 
abroad.  They  are  very  often 
ascribed  to  Parmigianino  or  his 
school.  Parma,  however,  owns  the 
majority  of  his  works  in  oil  and 
fresco.  Examples  may  lie  seen  in 
nearly  all  the  principal  churches, 
in  private  houses,  and  in  tJic  public 
gallery.  He  died  in  1560,  aged 
about  seventy.^ 

'  X'asari,  \-.  pjj.  235-241.  Ronchini.  ZJ/^c 
<juadri  di  Girolamo  Mazzola  (Atti  c  mciiipric 
ilella  R.  Dcpiit.  di  s/otia  pairia  p(r  I' Emilia. 
new  series.  \\\.  [i.Trt  i.      .Moden.a,  1881). 


GTROI^AMO    ]\IAZZOLA-]5EnOTJ 


He  was  a  careful  imitator  of  Correggio  and  Parmigianino,  and 
though  their  inferior,  he  shows  a  strain  of  pleasing  originality  in  his 
composition,  his  types,  and,  above  all,  in  his  colour.  Comparing  him 
with  Parmigianino,  we  sec  him  to  have  been  a  less  accomplished 
draughtsman  ;  but  on  the  other  hand,  he  is  less  mannered  and  artificial. 
One  curious  feature  of  his  works  is  the  evicU-nt  derivation  of  some  of 
his  figures  from 
statues  by  Antonio 
Begarelli.  His 
colour  is  soft  and 
transparent,  and 
at  times  weak, 
owing  to  his  over- 
fondness  for  those 
pale  opalescent 
tints  which  recall 
the  changeful  sur- 
face of  mother-of- 
pearl. 

His  master- 
piece is  the  Coii- 
ccption,  a  picture 
which  fairly  ranks 
as  one  of  the  best 
works  of  the  Par- 
mesan andEmilian 
schools  in  the  first 
part  of  the  si.x.- 
teenth     century. 

The  influence  of  Correggio  manifests  itself  more  especially 
transparent  colour,  the  half-tones  and  shadow 
quisitely  light  and  delicate.  The  scrupulous  accuracy  of  the  outlines, 
the  somewhat  excessive  length  of  the  figures,  and  the  convolutions 
of  the  draperies,  recall  Parmigianino.  Some  of  the  figures  of  youth- 
ful   angels    betray    reminiscences    of    the    terra-cottas    modelled    by 


N.iple: 


the 
of   which    are    e.\- 


37S 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


Begarelli  for  the  Benedictines  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista.  The 
general  effect  is  broad  and  coherent,  in  spite  of  the  minute  execution 
of  details  and  the  number  of  figures  introduced  ;  but  the  picture 
has  been  most  severely  cleaned,  an  operation  which  has  robbed  it 
of  much  of  its  brilliance,  and  has,  indeed,  completely  ruined  it  in 
parts.  The  noble  beauty  of  the  faces,  especially  of  the  female  figures, 
is,  however,  but  slightly  impaired.  {Sec 
illustration  on  p.  349.) 

Giorgio  Gandino  del  Grano,  born  in 
Parma  towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  died  in  his  native  city  in  153S. 
Very  little  is  known  either  of  his  life  or 
his  works.  The  latter  are  comparatively 
rare.  He  felt  the  influence  of  Correg- 
gio,  but  though  an  artist  of  considerable 
talent,  he  never  approached  his  master 
in  transparency  of  colour  and  sobriety 
of  composition.  His  tints  are  some- 
what hard  and  violent  ;  the  folds  of  his 
draperies  confused  and  tortuous.  He 
had  a  tendency  to  over-crowd  his  com- 
positions, as  we  see  in  the  pictures  by 
him  in  the  Parma  Gallery,  and  one  in 
the  Casa  Scotti  at  Milan,  the  latter 
iroT  ,l^  tHusrnin   m  attributed  to  Correggio.     The  eye  wan- 

,  p.-^,„,a  Gallery.  cl^rs  ovcr  these  works,  seeking  in  vain 

for  some   reposeful   space   between    the 
nnumerable    accessories    fill     up     every    available     inch    of 
^  Certain    traits    in    his    pictures    seem    to    indicate    that    he 

had  been  affected  to  some  extent  by  the  neighbouring  school 
of  Lombardy.  In  1534,  immediately  after  the  death  of  Correggio, 
he  was  commissioned  to  continue  the  decoration  of  the  cathe- 
dral, and  paint  the  vault  of  the  presbytery  and  the  apse. 
P)ut,  as  we  have  seen,  he  died  shortly  afterwards  before  he 
had     begun     his     works,     and     his     son     was     compelled     to     refund 


figures  ; 
ground. 


liERNARDINO    GATTI  379 

the  250  imperial  lire  paid  him  on  account.  {Sec  illustration  on 
P-    350.) 

Many  writers  include  among  Correggio's  pupils  or  followers  in 
Parma  Bernardino  Gatti,  called  //  Sot'aro,  in  reference  to  the  trade  of 
his  father,  a  cooper.  He  was  l)orn  at  Cremona  about  1500.  When 
we  consider  that  constant  communication  was  kept  up  between  Parma 
and  Cremona  ;  that  //  Soiaro  was  the  same  age  as  Corrcggio  ;  that  his 
art  is  evidently  based  on  that  of  the  master  ;  that  he  was  cmployc^d  by 
the  ofhcials  for  whom  Corrcggio  and  Parmigianino  had  worked,  we 
must  admit  that  the  arguments  in  support  of  the  opinion  of  early 
writers  are  very  strong.  Indeed,  if  //Soiaro  did  not  make  any  sojourn 
in  Parma  till  1560,  when  he  came  to  paint  the  frescoes  of  the  Steccata, 
and  if  we  must  believe  that  he  had  never  visited  the  city  before,  or  at 
most  had  only  passed  through  it,  how  are  we  to  e.xplain  the  evident 
reminiscences  of  Correggio's  forms  and  colour  in  his  works,  and  how 
account  for  the  fact  that  his  pictures  and  drawings  have  been  freely 
ascribed  to  Corrcggio  in  the  past,  and  are  still  occasionally  so  ascribed  ? 
//Soiaro  was  an  elderly  man  in  1560  ;  he  was  about  sixty  years  old, 
an  age  at  which  no  artist  adopts  a  new  manner,  or  revolutionises  his 
own,  more  especially  an  artist  like  Gatti,  who  had  lived  in  Lombardy, 
and  in  contact  with  a  painter  such  as  Pordenone.  He  worked 
in  his  native  city,  at  Pavia,  at  Piacenza,  and  at  Parma,  where  he 
remained  for  some  time,  engaged  on  the  frescoes  in  the  Steccata  and 
on  various  pictures.  He  died  at  an  advanced  age  in  1575,  and  there 
is  a  tradition  that  during  the  last  years  of  his  life  he  painted  with  his 
left  hand,  his  right  being  paralysed.  His  works,  though  distinctly 
inferior  to  those  of  Corrcggio,  are  not  without  a  certain  grace  and 
sweetness,  a  certain  beauty  of  colour,  and  transparency  of  chiaroscuro, 
which  stamps  them  as  emanations  from  the  art  of  the  latter.^ 

These  were  the   artists  whom  historic  evidences  and  probabilities 

combine  to  group  round  Corrcggio  at   Parma.      But  there  must  have 

been  many  others,  whose  names  are  no  longer  remembered  ;  and  others 

'  Vasari,  vi.  p.  494.  G.  Aglio,  Le  pitturc  c  Ic  scolture  dclla  citta  di  Cremona, 
])p.  18,  27,  52,  155,  159,  etc.  F.  Sacchi,  Notizie  pittoriche  cremonesi.  Cremona,  1872. 
B.  Soresina  Vidoni,  La  pittiira  cremonese  descritta.  Milan,  1824.  I.anzi,  Storia  pittorica, 
ii.  p.  319.     Bassano,  1795-96. 


38o  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

again,  whom  it  is  no  longer  possible  to  identify  with  any  work,  but 
who  formed  themselves  by  study  of  or  contact  with  the  master. 

Among  the  most  curious  and  important  works  of  Correggio's  school 
in  the  Parma  Gallery  is  a  Procession  to  Calvary.  Jesus,  in  a  white  robe, 
advances  in  the  midst,  bowed  down  by  the  weight  of  the  cross.  He 
gazes  pitifully  at  the  Virgin,  who  falls  fainting  into  the  arms  of  the 
Magdalen.  In  the  foreground,  a  group  of  soldiers  attack  St.  John, 
thrusting  him  violently  aside,  and  forbidding  his  approach  to  jesus, 
who,  at  the  same  time,  is  pushed  away  from  him  by  a  ruffian,  who 
raises  his  arm  to  strike.  Behind  is  a  crowd  of  helmeted  soldiers 
armed  with  lances,  two  of  them  on  horseback.  One  of  these,  on  a 
black  horse,  is  in  complete  armour,  and  carries  a  standard.  The 
other,  whose  back  is  turned  to  the  spectator,  rides  a  white  horse,  and 
points  with  outstretched  hand  to  Golgotha.  The  sky  is  veiled  in 
masses  of  white  cloud. 

This  work  was  originally  ascribed  to  Anselmi,  and  later,  to  Cor- 
reggio  himself.  Da  Erba  declared  it  to  be  a  juvenile  essay  of  the 
latter,  whereas  Algarotti  saw  in  it  Allegri's  "  second  manner,"  and 
believed  it  to  have  been  painted  at  the  time  when  the  master 
abandoned  his  Mantegnesque  style  for  a  more  individual  method. ^ 
Such  opinions  could  only  have  been  advanced  at  a  time  when  no  very 
accurate  idea  of  Correggio's  successive  phases  had  been  formed.  It 
is  impossible  to  accept  this  picture  as  a  work  of  the  master.  In  spite 
of  certain  fine  qualities  of  composition,  and  the  luminous  effect  of  the 
colour,  it  is  very  faulty  in  drawing,  and  has  little  grace,  and  little 
transparence  in  the  shadows.  Neither  can  we  discover  in  it  any 
of  the  distinctive  characteristics  of  Anselmi.  The  brilliant  eyes,  the 
careful  drawing  of  the  extremities,  which  he  generally  represents  in 
animated  motion,  as  challenging  difficulties  he  knows  himself  able  to 
overcome,  above  all,  the  clear  and  delicate  colour,  and  the  complicated 
folds  of  drapery,  are  alike  conspicuous  by  their  absence. 

The  author  of  the  picture  is,  as  a  fact,  unknown.  Was  he  one  of 
the  painters  mentioned  in  documents  of  the  period  }  Or  has  the  work 
outlived  the  name  of  its  creator  ?     The  same  questions  may  be  asked 

'   Bottari,  Raaolta  di  ktkrc,  vii.  p.  420. 


<.cc«.* 


^*.1' 


POMPOXIO    AI.LEGRI  383 

of  the  latter  in  1593,  the  last  year  in  which  we  find  any  mention 
of  hini.^ 

He  painted  on  other  occasions  for  the  cathedral,  and  for  the 
churches  of  Santa  Cecilia,  San  Vitale,  San  Francesco,  etc.  There  is 
also  a  Madonna  ami  Child  by  him  over  an  altar  on  th('  left  of  the 
parish  church  of  La  Trinita.  Of  his  mediocre  art  we  need  say  little. 
In  his  works  all  his  father's  qualities  are  recognisable  in  a  state  of 
decay  and  exhaustion.  The  colour  is  dull  and  ashen,  the  drawing 
contemptible,  the  composition  poor  and  feeble.  Some  faint  echo  of 
Correggio's  smiling  radiance  of  expression  strikes  the  spectators  in  a 
face  here  and  there,  but  this  is  all. 

Reverence  for  his  father  did  not  secure  tender  treatment  for  him 
from  all  his  contemporaries.  The  work  he  executed  in  collaboration 
with  other  artists  of  his  own  calibre  in  the  church  of  San  Bartolomeo 
at  Busseto  was  openly  and  severely  condemned  by  the  Venetian 
painter,  Pietro  dal  Pozzo,  who  advised  the  wardens  not  to  pay  the 
wdiole  of  the  stipulated  price,  on  the  grounds  that  "  there  was  not  a 
single  figure  in  the  composition  which  showed  any  trace  of  contours, 
muscles,  relief,  or  expression."  - 

It  has  been  stated  that  with  the  gradual  disappearance  of  these 
artists,  who  flourished  at  the  same  time  with  Correggio,  in  the  same 
places,  and  were  his  disciples  either  directly  or  indirectly,  the  memory 
of  the  master  and  the  admiration  felt  for  his  works  also  faded  and  died 
out.  We  must  protest  against  the  exaggeration  of  such  statements. 
It  is  by  no  means  true  that  Correggio  w'as  ever  in  danger  of  being 
forgotten,  or  that  his  works  came  to  be  held  in  very  slight  account. 

The  scanty  number  of  writers  who  concerned  themselves  with  him 
during  the  sixteenth  century,  as  compared  with  the  hundreds  who  made 
the  other  great  artists  of  the  Renaissance  their  theme,  has  caused  a 
misapprehension  as  to  the  respect  felt  for  him  by  the  painters  who 
flourished  during  the  half  century  after  his  death. 

'  Nicola  Tacoli,  Memorie  di  J?c\i;,i:/i>  di  Loinbardia,  iii.  p.  495  et  set/.  Pjaistrocchi, 
Notizic  dei  pittori.  Tiraboschi,  vi.  p.  290.  Pungileoni,  ii.  \).  262  <•/  Sfr/.  Higi,  p.  63. 
Meyer,  AUgememes  Kiinstkr-Lexikon,  i.  p.  481.      Correggio,  p.  261,  etc. 

'-  DicJiiarazione  autentica  di  Pietro  dal  Pozzo,  presented  to  the  Parma  Galler)-  l)y 
Count  L.  F.  ^'aldrighi. 


384  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

It  is  true,  however,  that  no  contemporary  writer  mentions  him. 
Ariosto,  who  lived  in  the  same  district,  who  sang  the  praises  of  the 
ladies  of  the  House  of  Correggio,  who  visited  the  Marchese  del  Vasto 


f^VI 

n 

n 

^^r^      T^^^^mm 

^fff'^H 

^^^^^^^I^^B^^   ^^m 

r   1 

bHB^^V'    s 

II 

^^Hr  ~'^'      '"*  Ab^l^^M 

'"  '^'"^Mfc      wl 

K 

kl 

^msEI 

Hfl 

W/^ 

H^B 

?¥? 

m 

H 

Hpjjj^^WR^ 

I 

gnn 

III  the  Naples  Museum. 

in   the   city   in    1531,^    omits   to   mention  him  in  Canto  xxxiii.   of  the 

I    I'lingilconi,  who  records  this  visit  (ii.  \>.  241),  further  cxiiresses  his  surprise  (p.  2)  that 
tlic  Marchese  should  iiave  summoned  Titian  to  Correggio  when  Allegri  was  there.     As 


THI-:    CROW" 


OF   ("ORREGGIO'S    FAME 


38s 


Orlando  Ftirioso,  where  he  records  the  fame  of  Leonardo,  Mantec^na, 
Gian  BelHni,  the  two  Dossi,  INlichehingelo,  Raphael,  and  Titi;in. 

This  omission,  however,  by  no  means  convinces  us  that  Correggio's 
works  were  not  appreciated  by  his  contemporaries.  The  circle  of  his 
admirers  was,  no  doubt,  a  restricted  one,  a  result  of  the  comparative 
unimportance  of 
the  scene  of  his 
labours,  where 
an  artist's  fame 
was  less  likely 
to  become  wide- 
spread than  at 
Rome  and  Ven- 
ice, or  even  at 
Mantua  and 
Ferrara.  Arios- 
to,  again,  was  a 
poet  and  not  a 
painter;  desiring 
to  pay  his  tribute 
to  art,  he  may 
very  well  have 
chosen  the  paint- 
ers most  uni- 
versally known  ; 
he  accepts  the 
verdict  of  the 
multitude,  re- 
stricting his  own  j^^  ii^^  j,,^^_^^^  j.^ii^,^.'^. 
initiative    in   the 

matter  to  the  inclusion  of  the  two   Dossi,  who,  like   himself,  lived  at 
Ferrara,   and  at  the  court  of  the   Estensi. 

The  fact  that  Vasari  was  able  to  glean  few  details  concerning  his 
life,  seems  to  us  a  very  feeble  argument  to  rely  on  in  proof  of  the  speedy 

the  reason  of  this  invitation  is  not  explained,  it  is  somewhat  unreasonable  to  wonder  at 
the  fact. 


386 


ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 


eclipse  of  Correggio's 
reputation.  The 
peaceful  and  unevent- 
ful life  he  led,  his  ab- 
sorption in  his  work, 
and  the  absence  of  all 
startling  and  heroic 
elements  in  his  his- 
tory, sufficiently  ex- 
plain the  lack  of 
In  the  Castle  of  Fontandiam.  materials  for  his  bio- 

graphy, just  as  they 
account  for  the  absurd  fables  which  grew  up  in  default  of  established 
facts. 

It  will  be  objected  that  other  writers  who  flourished  shortly  after 
Arlosto,  are  also  silent  concerning  him,  among  them  the  episcopal 
chancellor,  Marzocchi,  who  wrote  a  description  of  Parma  to  Alessandro 
Sforza,  and  Leandro  Alberti,  in  his  Dcscrizionc  di  tutta  Italia. 

Yet  it  is  hardly  matter  for  surprise  that  these  ecclesiasts,  whose 
principal  themes  were  fantastic  legends  bearing  on  the  origin  of 
the  cities,  the  miracles  performed  by  local  saints,  and  the  history 
of  relics,  should  have  felt  little  interest   in  painters  and  pictures. 

On  the  other  hand,  we  know  that  immediately  after  Correggio's 
death  the  Duke  of  Mantua  eagerly  demanded  the  drawings  of  the  Loves 

of  Jupiter,  and  that 
the  wardens  of  the 
cathedral  at  Parma 
caused  the  outside  of 
the  cupola  to  be  cased 
with  lead  for  the 
better  preservation  of 
the  frescoes  ;  that  in 
1546  the  portion  of 
the  wall  on  which Cor- 
reggio  had  painted 
his    Madotma     della 


THE   GROWm    OF   CORRFXIGIO'S   FAME 


387 


Scala  was  carefully 
preserved  when  the 
new  bastions  were 
erected  ;  that  the 
Fathers  of  the  An- 
nunciation battened 
and  clamped  the 
piece  of  wall  on 
which  their  fresco 
was  painted,  and 
transferred     it     for  ^-..   ^^^^^^.  ^'^^^'^^l^^^^^'"^"' ""'"' 

safety     from      one 

church  to  another.  These  facts,  which  atone  in  some  degree  for 
the  wanton  destruction  of  his  fresco  in  the  choir  of  the  Benedictine 
church,  sufficiently  prove  that  Correggio's  work  was  treated  with 
peculiar  reverence  by  his  immediate  survivors. 

Historians  and  writers  of  treatises  were  not  long  silent.      In  1552 

Landi  described  him  as   "  a  painter  nobly  formed  by  Nature  herself, 

rather   than   by   any    master.      No   one,"   he   adds,    "  excelled   him    in 

the  painting  of  children,  the  treatment  of  draperies,  and  the  rendering 

of  hair."  ^ 

Fabio  Segni  praised  him   in    two   epigrams  preserved   by  Vasari.- 

Lodovico    Dolce,   speaking   of   Giulio    Romano,    declares    him    to    be 

"  eclipsed  by  the  finer  colour  and  the  greater  charm  of  Antonio  da 

Correggio,    a    superb 

master,      by      whom 

there  are  pictures  in 

Parma    so     beautiful 

that    it    is  impossible 

to      desire     better."  " 

In    another   work   he 

1  Settc    Ubri   di'    catha- 
/og/ii,  p.  493. 

"    Vife,  iv.  p.  120. 

2  Dialogo  siilla  piltiint. 
p.  63. 


llw  Castle  of  FoTitandblo. 


388  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

includes  Allegri  among  the  most  illustrious  men  of  his  century.^  At 
about  the  same  i^eriod,  Anton  l^rancesco  Doni,  writing  to  Messer 
Simone  Carnesecchi,  exhorts  him  not  to  omit  to  see  Correggio's  works 
during  his  sojourn  in  Parma,-  and  Lamo  expresses  his  enthusiastic 
admiration  for  the  Noli  inc  taiigcre  in  1560. 

But  before  this,  in  the  year  1550,  Lorenzo  Torrentino,  of  Florence, 
had  published  Vasari's  Vitc  dci piu  eccellenti  pittori,  sailtori  ed  archi- 
tetti,  in  which,  save  for  a  trifling  reservation  in  reference  to  his  drawing, 
the  most  unbounded  praise  was  bestowed  on  Correggio's  work,  and  he 
himself  was  acclaimed  as  unique  {siiigolarissimo)  and  "an  exquisite 
genius."  During  the  years  which  passed  between  the  publication  of 
the  first  and  second  editions  of  the  Lives,  Vasari  had  seen  many  of 
Correggio's  works  again,  but  far  from  modifying  his  encomiums,  he 
waxed  still  more  enthusiastic.  In  the  second  edition  he  declares  that 
Allegri  "  had  achieved  the  modern  manner  so  perfectly,  that  in  a 
few  years,  by  his  natural  gifts  and  the  constant  practice  of  his  art, 
he  had  become  a  rare  and  marvellous  craftsman."  We  have  quoted 
other  criticisms  of  Vasari's  in  the  course  of  this  work,  but  his  con- 
clusion sums  them  all  up  in  a  phrase  :  "  Many  other  things  might  be 
said  of  his  works  ;  but  since  everything  of  his  is  regarded  as  divine 
by  the  best  judges  of  art  among  us,  I  will  not  linger  over  them."  ^ 

The  consideration  in  which  he  was  held  throughout  those  forty  years 
after  his  death,  when  it  is  suggested  that  he  was  forgotten  and  neglected, 
is  still  more  strongly  shown  in  the  tendency  of  many  famous  artists  to 
imitate  him,  and  even  occasionally  to  copy  from  him.  The  list  of 
painters  and  pictures  would  become  interminable  if  we  attempted  to 
follow  the  traces  of  Correggio's  influence  down  to  the  time  of  the 
Carracci,  to  whom  the  credit  of  having  renewed  his  fame  justly  belongs. 
A  notable  example  of  the  tendency  we  have  pointed  out  is  to  be  found 
in  the  case  of  Federigo  Barocci,  who,  although  a  fellow-citizen  of 
Raphael,  and  an  enthusiastic  student  of  his  great  compatriot's  art,  was 
fascinated  by  the  works  of  Correggio,  whose  pictures  he  copied,  and 
whose  motives  he  reproduced.      It  is  interesting,  too,  to  note  how  even 

'    Vita  delP  invitissimo  e  gloriosissimo  impcrador  Carlo  Quinto,  p.  171.     \'enice,  1561. 
Libri  tre  tiei  quali  si  tratta  idle  diverse  sorte  delle  gemme,  p.  68.     Venice,  1 565. 
-  Bottari,  Raccolta  di  lettere,  iii.  p.  350.  •'  Op.  cit.  iv.  p.  118. 


INFLUENCK    ON    HIS   SUCCESSORS 


389 


before  the  lime  of  iliu  Carracci,  ihe  current  of  Bolognese  art  set  in  the 
direction  of  our  painter's  manncM",  ami  how  the  tendency  to  adopt  his 
forms  had  dechired  itself  before  the  rise;  of  the  t,rrcat  school  of  Bologna. 
It  is  true  that  Biagio  Pupini  dalle  Lame,  Girolamo  Marchesi, 
Innocenzo  da  Imola,  Bagnacavallo,  and  some  few  others,  only  threw  off 
the  spell  of  Francia  to  fall  under  that  of  Raphael  ;  but  it  is  equally 
true  that   their  immediate  successors  turned  with  one  accord  to  Cor- 


reggio.  Orazio  Sammachini,  Lorenzo  Sabbatini,  the  Procaccini,  the 
Passarotti,  Nicolo  dell'  Abate,  in  fact,  all  the  Bolognese  and  Modenese 
painters  who  flourished  in  the  second  half  of  the  sixteenth  century,  felt 
the  fascination  of  Correggio's  colour  and  line.  In  many  examples  of 
their  art  we  could  point  not  only  to  imitation,  but  direct  plagiarism. 
The  Martyrdom  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  by  Nicolo  dell'  Abate,  in 
the  Dresden  Gallery,  is  inspired  to  some  extent  by  Pordenone's  pic- 
ture at  Cortemaggiore  ;   but   the  central  group,   with  the  executioner 


39°  ANTONIO    DA   CORREGGIO 

in  the  act  of  killing  St.  Paul,  is  "lifted'"  bodily  from  Correggio's 
5V.  Placidus. 

Bartolomeo  Passarotti  was  perhaps  of  all  these  painters  the  one 
who  approached  the  master  most  nearly  in  his  colour,  and  the 
sweetness  of  his  types.  In  a  small  early  picture  by  him  in  the 
Bologna  Gallery,  representing  the  Virgin  and  Child  with  several 
saints,  in  the  shade  of  a  wood,  the  tone,  the  types,  and  the  motives 
are  very  Correggesque  in  character,  and  the  same  may  be  said  of 
his  large  picture  in  the  church  of  .San  Giacomo  at  Bologna,  where 
the  figures  of  Jesus,  the  Virgin,  and  St.  John  the  Baptist  were 
evidently  suggested  by  those  of  the  Madonna  ivith  St.   George. 

No  great  importance  has  been  attached  to  the  work  of  these 
first  imitators  of  the  master,  for  it  was  silent,  reticent,  and  individual. 
The  Carracci,  on  the  other  hand,  made  the  study  of  Correggio  a 
science,  copying  his  works,  and  setting  their  disciples  to  copy  them, 
lauding  his  "pure  and  sovereign  style"  in  their  school  and  in  their 
writings,  and  challenging  discussions  as  to  his  merits  with  the  advo- 
cates of  the  Tuscan  school.  By  these  means  they  succeeded  in 
popularising  his  works,  and  diffusing  that  knowledge  of,  and  admiration 
for  them,  which  at  first  had  been  confined  to  the  more  discriminating. 

The  Carracci  indeed  may  be  said  to  have  finally  determined  that 
tendency  to  accept  the  formuke  of  Correggio,  which,  by  a  sort  of 
historic  necessity,  had  begun  to  manifest  itself  ten  years  earlier. 
What  indeed  had  the  Carracci  accomplished  on  the  lines  laid  down 
by  certain  of  their  predecessors  ?  They  set  aside  the  art  built 
up  upon  the  decayed  formuke  of  the  imitators  of  Michelangelo  ; 
they  even  sought  to  eliminate  those  formula;  altogether,  and  to 
attach  themselves  chronologically  to  the  point  of  departure  of  the 
Miclielangiolisti  themselves,  more  especially  to  Correggio  and  Titian. 
They  showed  great  acuteness  in  reviving  a  formula  which  was 
peculiarly  suited  to  the  taste  of  the  age,  and  had  not  as  yet  been 
exhausted  by  use  and  abuse  ;  reaction  had  become  inevitable ;  and 
had  the  mannerists  repeated  and  gradually  emasculated  the  forms  of 
Correggio  and  Titian,  instead  of  those  of  Michelangelo,  the  final  result 
would  not  improbably  have  been  a  revival  of  the  style  of  Michelangelo. 

That    the    necessity    for    some    such    revival   was   strongly  felt    is 


ENTHUSIASM    OF   CONNOISSEURS  351 

proved  by  the  fact  that  even  in  rebel  Tuscany  there  were  some 
who  turned  to  our  paintiM",  invoking,  so  to  s[)cal<,  a  transfusion 
of  new  blood  in  their  artistic  veins.  Lodovico  Cardi  of  Cigoli, 
Gregorio  Pagani,  and  Cristoforo  Allori  broke  faith  with  their  masters, 
and  borrowed  from  Correggio  something  of  his  chiaroscuro,  his  grace, 
and  his  brilliance. 

A  transcription  of  the  praises  lavished  on  Correggio  from  1580 
onwards  would  be  a  long  and  useless  task.  Admiration  had  changed 
to  enthusiasm.  Artists  looked  upon  his  works  as  their  gospel  ;  col- 
lectors bought  up  his  pictures  regardless  of  price,  forcibly  abducted 
them  from  churches,  or  paid  for  them  almost  with  their  weight  in  gold  ; 
writers  described  them  in  extravagant  hyperbole. 

Meyer  maintains  that  all  this  interest  was  of  a  purely  practical 
and  technical  nature,  and  concerned  itself  little  with  the  facts  of  the 
painter's  life. 

It  is,  indeed,  not  improbable  that  his  biography  was  of  little 
moment  to  those  who  gave  themselves  up  to  enthusiastic  worship  of 
his  masterpieces,  and  contented  themselves,  perhaps,  for  the  rest, 
with  the  meagre  details  they  found  in  Vasari.  Lomazzo  does  not 
include  Correggio  among  the  "seven  columns"  of  his  "Temple  of 
Painting."  Nevertheless,  he  sings  of  him  as  unsurpassed  in  colour 
and  in  light,  as  "  a  superhuman  "  painter,  and  worthy  to  rank  with 
the  ancients  as  a  master  of  the  proportions  of  the  body. 

In  15S0,  Annibale  Carracci,  referring  to  Allegri's  supposed  poverty, 
delivered  himself  as  follows  :  "  I  rage  and  lament  within  myself  at  the 
very  thought  of  the  misery  of  poor  Antonio,  so  great  a  man,  if  indeed  he 
were  a  man,  and  not  rather  an  angel  in  human  form,  who  had  strayed 
into  a  country  where  he  was  misunderstood,  when  he  ought  rather  to 
have  been  exalted  to  the  stars.     And  here  he  died  miserably  ! "  ' 

In  the  same  year  Frate  Giovanni  Malazappi  wrote  of  him  as  "  the 
most  excellent  painter,  Antonio  da  Correggio,  famous  among  all  the 
Italian  masters."'-  Borghini  described  him  as  "unique,  excellent, 
marvellous!"''    Armenini,^  Alessandro  Tassoni,"  Gian  Battista  Leoni,'"' 

1   p]ottari,  i.  p.  122.  -   Cronkhe  della  J^rovincia  Bologna,  op.  at. 

^  II  Riposo,  p.  374.     Florence,  1585. 

*  D£  veri precetti  della  pittura,  p.  12.      Ravenna,  i5<S7. 

'-  Pensieri  diversi,  vol.  x.  cliap.  xix.     Carpi,  1620.  "  Bottari,  v.  p.  53. 


392  ANTONIO    DA    CORREGGIO 

men  of  letters  and  writers  of  treatises  in  a  body,  declared  him  one  of 
the  apostles  of  painting. 

From  this  time  forth,  his  fame  and  his  merits  were  never  called 
in  question.  It  would  be  superfluous,  therefore,  to  glean  further 
suffrages  from  the  writers  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries. 
Artists  journeyed  to  Parma  to  see  his  frescoes.  His  influence  gradually 
permeated  throughout  half  Europe.  Meyer  tells  us  that  not  only  in 
Italy,  but  in  the  Tyrol,  and  in  central  and  southern  Germany,  it  has 
left  its  mark  in  sacred  pictures,  just  as  it  has  manifested  itself  in  the 
decorations,  gay  with  smiling/////'/,  of  innumerable  French  and  German 
palaces.^  During  the  past  century,  and  throughout  our  own,  few  of 
the  travellers  who  have  written  of  Italy  have  omitted  to  visit  Parma, 
and  study  Correggio's  works  there.  When  Prince  Metternich  arrived 
at  Parma  in  1817  on  a  mission  to  the  ex-Empress,  Marie  Louise, 
he  seems  to  have  troubled  himself  but  little  with  her,  her  govern- 
ment, or  the  concerns  of  Napoleon,  then  a  prisoner  at  St.  Helena. 
Of  his  preoccupation  and  indifference  he  has  left  ample  proof  in  his 
memoirs.  F"or  once  the  cold  spirit  of  diplomacy  and  the  sordid  cal- 
culations of  political  opportunism  are  forgotten  in  the  delight  of  eye 
and  heart :  "  Cette  ville  est  le  berceau  du  Correge.  Les  salles  et  les 
murs  sont  couverts  de  ses  chefs-d'oeuvre.  On  ne  saurait  se  figurer  rien 
de  plus  enchanteur  que  tout  ce  qu'il  a  legue  a  des  siecles  malheureux 
de  ne  pouvoir  I'imiter  et  heureux  de  pouvoir  I'admirer  !  "  - 

1  Correggio,  p.  7. 

'^  Memoires,  documents  et  eerits  dive/s  laisscs  pnr  h  Prince  de  Metteniicli,  iii.  p.  50.    Paris, 


A    CATALOGUE    OF 
CORRHGGIO'S     WORKS 


CORREGGIO'S    WORKS 


FRESCOES 


I.  Vault  of  the  Camera  di  San  Paolo  at 
Parma.  Diana  (over  the  fireplace).  Sixteen 
ovals  in  the  vault  with  ptitti,  and  sixteen 
lunettes  painted  in  monochrome  with  the 
following  subjects  :  i.  The  Graces;  ii.  Adonis ; 
iii.  Bonus  Evenius;  iv.  The  Earth;  v.  Juno 
c/iastised;  vi.  A  Vestal;  vii.  A  Philosopher; 
viii.  The  Temple  of  Jupiter;  i.x.  The  Fates ; 
X.  Ino  Leucothoi-;  xi.  Ceres;  xii.  A  Satyr; 
xiii.  Chastity;  xiv.  Virginity ;  xv.  Fortune  : 
xvi.  Minerva. 


Parma  ;  now  in  the  R.  Biblioteca  Palatina  of 
that  city. 

5.  Frieze  in  the  nave  of  San  Giovanni 
Evangclista.  The  design  only  by  Correggio, 
the  work  executed  by  Francesco  Maria 
Rondani,  with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  the 
fourth  compartment  on  the  right. 

1524. 

6.  St.  John  the  Evangelist  at  Patinos. 
Lunette  over  the  small  door  in  the  left 
transept  of  San  Giovanni  E\-angelista. 


1520-24. 

2.  Cupola  of  the  church  of  San  Giovanni 
Evangelista  at  Parma.  Ceiling :  The  aged 
St.  John  sees  the  Saviour  ascending  into 
Heaven  surrounded  by  Apostles  and  Angels. 
Frieze  :  Symbols  of  the  Evangelists.  Pen- 
dentives  :  i.  St.  Luke  and  St.  Ambrose;  2. 
St.  Mark  and  St.  Gregory;  3.  St.  John  and 
St.  Augustine;  4.  St.  Matthew  and  St. 
Jerome.  Subjects  in  monochrome  on  the 
soffits  of  the  arches  :  St.  Joseph,  Moses, 
Elijah,  Daniel,  Jonah,  Samson,  Abraham's 
Sacrifice,  Cain  and  Abel. 

3.  Heads  of  Angels.  Fragments  from  Cor- 
reggio's  fresco  in  the  apse  of  San  Giovanni 
Evangelista.  In  Mr.  Ludwig  Mond's  collec- 
tion, London. 

4.  The  Coronation  of  the  Virgin.  Formerly 
in  the  apse  of  San  Giovanni   Evangelista  at 


1524-2S. 

7.  The  Madonna  delta  Scala.  A  fresco, 
formerly  over  the  Porta  San  Michele  at  Parma, 
now  in  the  gallery  of  that  city. 

8.  The  Annunciatio7i.  Formerly  in  the 
church  of  the  Annunziata  at  Parma,  now  in 
the  gallery  of  that  city. 

1524-30- 

9.  Cupola  of  the  cathedral  at  Parma. 
Ceiling :  The  Assumption  of  the  Virgin. 
Balustrade  :  Genii  bearing  candelabra,  and 
sprinkling  incense  ttpon  the  flames,  ivhile  the 
Apostles  gaze  at  the  ascending  Virgin.  Pen- 
dentives  :  The  four  patron  saints  of  Parma, 
St.  Hilary,  St.  Bernard,  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
and  St.  Thomas,  surrounded  by  youthful 
angels.  Six  putti  in  monochrome  on  the 
soffits  of  the  arches. 


396 


A   CATALOGUE    OF   CORREGGIO'S   WORKS 


PICTURES    OF    SACRED    SUBJECTS 


[512-14. 

1.  The  Marriage  of  S/.  Catherine,  in  the 
presence  of  St.  Francis  ofAssisi,  St.  Dominic, 
and  St.  Anne.  A  small  picture,  belonging  to 
Dr.  Gustavo  Frizzoni. 

2.  Madonna  and  Child,  with  angels  singing 
attd  playing.  A  small  picture,  in  the  Uffizi, 
Florence. 

3.  The  Bolognini  Madonna.  The  Virgin 
and  Child  with  the  little  St.  John.  In  the 
Museo  Artistico  Municipale  atlVIilan.  Trans- 
ferred from  canvas  to  panel. 

4.  The  Malaspina  Madonna.  The  Virgin 
and  Child  with  the  little  St.  John,  St.  Elizabeth, 
and  St.  Joseph.  Small  picture  in  the  Museo 
Comunale,  Pavia. 


[515-17. 

12.  The  Repose  in  Egypt.  The  Madonna 
and  Child,  with  St.  Joseph  and  St.  Francis  of 
Assisi.  An  altar-piece,  formerly  in  the  church 
of  San  Francesco  at  Correggio,  now  in  the 
Uffizi,  Florence. 

13.  La  Zingarclla,  or  Madonna  with  the 
Rabbit.  The  Virgin  and  Child  with  angels. 
A  small  picture,  in  the  Naples  Museum. 

14.  The  Afadonna  with  St.  James.  The 
Virgin  and  Child,  with  St.  James  and  St. 
Joseph.  A  small  picture,  in  the  Hampton 
Court  Caller)-. 

1 5.  The  Madonna  and  Child  with  the  little 
St.  John.  A  small  picture,  in  the  Prado  at 
Madrid. 


1513-14- 

5.  The  Nativity.  The  Virgin  adoring  the 
Infant  Christ,  with  St.  Elizabeth,  the  little  St. 
John,  St.  Joseph,  angels,  and  shepherds.  A 
small  picture  in  Cavaliere  Benigno  Crespi's 
collection  at  Milan. 

6.  The  Campari  Madonna.  The  Virgin  and 
Child.  A  small  picture  in  the  Estense  Gallery 
at  Modena. 

7.  The  Virgin  and  Child,  -with  St.  Elizabeth 
and  the  little  St.  John.  A  small  picture  in 
Prince  Leopold  of  Hohenzollern's  gallery  at 
Sigmaringen. 

8.  Christ  taking  leave  of  his  Mother  before 
the  Passion.  Jesus,  the  Virgin,  St.  Mary 
Magdalen,  and  St.  John.  A  small  picture,  in 
Mr.  R.  H.  Benson's  collection,  London. 

1514. 

9.  St.  Martha.  St.  Martha,  St.  Mary 
Magdalen,  St.  Peter,  and  St.  Leonard. 
Formerly  in  the  chapel  of  Santa  Maria  della 
Misericordia  at  Correggio,  now  -in  Lord 
Ashburton's  collection.     An  altar-piece. 

[515. 

10.  The  Madonna  with  St.  Francis, 
formerly  in  the  church  of  San  Francesco  at 
Correggio,  now  in  the  Dresden  Gallery.  The 
Virgin  and  Child  enthroned  between  St. 
Francis  of  Assisi,  St.  Anthony  of  Padua,  St. 
John  the  Baptist,  St.  Catherine,  angels,  and 
cherubs.     Altar-piece. 

11.  The  Casalmaggiore  Madonna  ij)  Altar- 
piece  in  the  gallery  at  Frankforton-thc-Main. 


[518-19. 

16.  The  Marriage  of  St.  Catherine.  A 
small  picture,  belonging  to  Cavaliere  Paolo 
Fabrizi  at  Rome.  A  supposed  replica  belongs 
to  Dr.  Theodor  Schall  of  Berlin. 

519-20. 

17.  La  Madonna  del  Latte.  Madonna  and 
Child  with  an  angel.  A  small  picture,  in  the 
Budapest  Gallery. 

1 8.  La  Madonna  della  Cesta.  The  Virgin 
and  Child  with  St.  Joseph.  A  small  picture, 
in  the  National  Gallery,  London. 

19.  The  Virgin  adoring  the  Infant  Christ. 
A  small  picture,  in  the  Uffizi,  Florence. 


[520-24. 

20.  The  Martyrdotn  of  St.  Placidus  and 
St.  Fla-L'ia.  Formerly  in  the  church  of  San 
Giovanni  Evangelista,  Parma,  now  in  the 
Parma  Gallery. 

2 1 .  The  Descent  from  the  Cross.  The  dead 
Christ,  the  Virgin,  the  Maries,  and  Joseph  of 
Arimathaea.  Formerly  in  the  church  of  San 
Giovanni  Evangelista  at  Parma,  now  in  the 
Parma  Gallery. 

22.  Eece  Homo.  Christ,  with  the  Virgin 
Mary,  the  Magdalen,  Pilate,  and  a  soldier. 
In  the  National  Gallery,  London. 

23.  Christ  in  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane. 
In  the  distance  the  sleeping  Apostles,  and 
the  soldiers  with  Judas.  A  small  picture 
at  Apslcy  House,  London. 


A   CATALOGUI'    OK   CORREGGIO'S    WORKS 


397 


1522. 

24.  The  Marriatrc  of  St.  Catherine.  The 
Virgin  and  Child,  with  St.  Catherine  and  St. 
Sebastian.  The  martyrdom  of  St.  Catlicrine 
and  of  St.  Sebastian  in  the  bacl<ground.  In 
the  Louvre. 

1524-26. 

25.  Noli 


tangcrc. 
kneeling  before  Christ. 
Madrid. 


The     Magdalen 
In     the      Trado, 


1525-26. 

26.  The  Madonna  with  St.  Sebastia?i.  The 
Virgin  and  Child  with  St.  Sebastian,  Si. 
Geminianus,  St.  Roch,  and  angels.  .An 
altar-piece,  formerly  in  the  chapel  of  the 
Confraternith.  di  San  Sebastiano  at  Modcna, 
now  in  the  Dresden  Gallery. 

1526-28. 

27.  St.  Catlicriiw  rcadiiio.  A  small  picture, 
in  the  Hampton  Court  tlallery. 

[527-28. 

28.  The  Madonna  -with  St.  Jerome,  called 


//  Giorno.  The  Virgin  and  Child,  St.  Jerome, 
the  Magdalen,  St.  John,  and  an  angel.  Altar- 
piece,  formerly  in  the  church  of  Sant'  Antonio 
at  I'arma,  now  in  the  Parma  Gallery. 

1529-30. 

29.  The  Repose  in  Egypt,  known  as  La 
Madonna  delta  Scodella.  The  Virgin  and 
Cliild,  with  St.  Joseph  and  an  angel.  Altar- 
piece,  formerly  in  the  church  of  the  Holy 
Sepulchre  at  Parma,  now  in  the  Parma 
Gallery. 

30.  The  Nativity,  known  as  La  Notte. 
The  Virgin  and  Child  with  St.  Joseph,  angels, 
and  shepherds.  An  altar-piece,  formerly  in 
llie  church  of  San  Prospero  at  Reggie  in  the 
P'.niilia,  now  in  the  Dresden  Gallery. 

1530-31- 

31.  The  Madonna  with  St.  George.  The 
Virgin  and  Child  with  St.  Peter  Martyr,  St 
Giorge,  St.  Geminianus,  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
.md  youthful  angels.  Altar-piece,  formerly 
in  the  Oratory  of  St.  Peter  Martyr  at  .Modena, 
now  in  the  Dresden  Gallery. 


MYTHOLOGICAL    AND    ALLEGORICAL    PICTURES 


I.  A  piping  Faun 
picture  in  the  Munich 


Shepherd. 
inacothek. 


r52I-22. 

2.  The  Education  of  Cupid. 
Mercury,  and  Cupid.  In  the 
Gallery,  London. 

3.  Antiope.      .-Xntiopc,   Cupid,  an 
in  the  form  of  a  Satyr.     In  the  Lou\ 


Venus, 
National 


530-33- 

4.  llandc.  Danae,  Cupid,  and  two 
Amorini.      In   the   Borghcsc  Gallery,   Rome. 

5.  Leda.  Leda,  the  swan,  nymphs,  and 
swans,  Cupid,  waiting-women,  and  putti.  In 
the  Berlin  Gallery. 

6.  /().  The  nymph  lo,  and  Jupiter  in  the 
form  of  a  cloud.     In  the  Belvedere,  Vienna. 

7.  I'ice,  an  allegory,  in  tempera.  In  the 
Louvre. 

8.  I'irtue,  an  allegory,  in  tempera.  In  the 
Louvre. 


LOST    OR    MISSING    WORKS 


1516-17. 

1.  Herodias.  The  e.~;ecutioner  [iresenting 
the  head  of  John  the  Baptist  to  Herodias. 

1517- 

2.  Christ,  the  Son  of  Man.  A  triptych,  with 
the  Saviour  on  a  rainbow  in  the  middle,  St. 
John  the  Baptist  on  the  left,  and  St.  Bartholo- 
mew on  the  right.  Formerly  in  the  chapel  of 
Santa  Maria  della  Misericordia  at  Correggio 


3.  The  Young  Man  fleeing  from  thf 
Captors  of  Christ.  Formerly  in  the  Barberini 
( iallery,  Rome. 

4.  St.  Mary  Magdalen,  painted  for  Gio- 
vanni Guidotti  di  Roncopo,  priest  of  Albinea. 

5.  The  Albinea  Madonna.  The  Virgin 
and  Child  between  St.  Mary  Magdalen  and 
St.  Lucy.  Formerly  in  the  parish  church  of 
Albinea,  near  Reggio. 


398 


A   CATALOGUE    OF   CORREGGIO'S   WORKS 


[523-24. 

6.  Frescoes  in  the  apse  of  San  Giovanni 
Evangelista  at  Parma,  destroyed  when  the 
choir  was  enlarged  in  15S7.  The  only  por- 
tions preserved  are  the  fragments  mentioned 
in  the  list  of  Correggio's  frescoes,  Nos.  3 
and  4. 


7.  The  Magdalen  in  a  Cave,  her  hands 
clasped  in  prayer.  Described  in  a  letter 
from  Veronica  Gambara  to  Isabella  d'Este. 

1533- 

8.  The  Loves  of  Jupiter.  Cartoons  executed 
for  Federigo  Gonzaga,  Duke  of  Mantua. 


DRAWINGS 


1.  The  Mat'riage  of  St.  Catherine,  in  the 
Royal  Library,  Turin. 

2.  La  Madonna  del  Lalte.  The  Virgin, 
St.  Anne,  the  Infant  Jesus,  the  little  St.  John, 
and  St.  Joseph.  Sketch,  in  the  Vienna 
Museum. 

3.  An  Apostle  and  an  Angel.  Study  for 
the  cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista  at 
Parma.     In  the  Louvre. 

4.  Three  Apostles  with  Angels.  Study  for 
the  cupola  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista  at 
Parma.     Vienna  Museum. 

5.  The  Apostle  St.  Paul,  with  Angels. 
Study  for  the  cupola  of  San  Giovanni 
Evangelista  at  Parma.  In  Herr  A.  von 
Beckerath's  collection,  Berlin. 

6  and  7.  An  Eagle  and  an  Angel.  A  Lion 
and  an  Angel.  The  symbols  of  the  Evan- 
gelists St.  John,  St.  Matthew,  and  St.  Luke. 
Two  small  studies  for  the  cupola  of  San 
Giovanni  Evangelista  at  Parma.  In  the 
Louvre. 

8.  The  Coronation  of  the  Virgin.  Study 
for  the  apse  of  San  Giovanni  Evangelista  at 
Parma.     In  the  Louvre. 

9.  The  Martyrdom  of  St.  Placidus  and  St. 
Flavia.     Study,  in  the  Louvre. 

10.  Madonna  and  Child.  Study  for  the 
Madonna  delta  Scala  at  Parma.  In  the 
Weimar  Museum. 

11.  The  Madonna  and  Child.  Study  for 
the  Madonna  delta  Seala.  In  the  British 
Museum. 


Study 
In   the 


Study 
In  the 


12-14.  Three  sketches  oi putti,  for  a  frieze. 
In  the  Louvre. 

15.  St.  John  the  Baptist  and  Angels. 
Study  for  one  of  the  pendentives  in  Parma 
Cathedral.     In  the  Louvre. 

16.  An  Apostle.  Study  for  the  cupola  of 
Parma  Cathedral.     In  the  Vienna  Museum. 

1 7.  The  Assumption  of  the  Virgin. 
for  the  cupola  of  Parma  Cathedral. 
Dresden  Gallery. 

1 8.  Adam,  Abraliam,  and  Isaac. 
for  the  cupola  of  Parma  Cathedral. 
Royal  Library,  Windsor. 

19.  Eve.  Study  for  the  cupola  of  Parma 
Cathedral.     In  the  British  Museum. 

20.  Three  Putti.  In  the  Duke  of  Devon- 
shire's collection  at  Chatsworth. 

21.  T7V0  Putti  embracing.  In  the  Duke  of 
Devonshire's  collection  at  Chatsworth. 

22.  Three  Putti  seated.  In  the  Duke  ot 
Devonshire's  collection  at  Chatsworth. 

23.  The  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds.  Study 
for  La  Nolle.     In  the  British  Museum. 

24.  Putti.  Study  for  the  Madonna  with 
St.  George.     In  the  Uffizi,  Florence. 

25.  St.  John,  St.  Roch,  St.  Agatha,  and  St. 
Anthony.     In  the  Uffizi,  Florence. 

26.  A  sleeping  Woman.  Study  for  the 
.Inliope.     In  the  Royal  Library,  Windsor. 

27.  A  nude  Woman,  with  Cupids.  Study 
for  the  Antiope  (?).     In  the  Louvre. 

28.  A  Head  of  Mercury.  Study  for  the 
Education  of  Cupid.     In  the  Uffizi,  Florence. 


INDEX 


N  I)  1{  X 


Abate,  Ercole  dell',  276 
Nicolo  dell',  389 

Abba,  Ercole,  276 

Affarosi,  Francesco  degli,  194 
Tommaso,  93 

Affo,  Ireneo,  153,  158,  159,  165,  229 

d'Agrate,  Antonio,  146,  187 
Gian  Francesco,  167,  250 

Alba,  Duke  of,  305 

Ferdinando  de,  sec  Vallc,  De 

Albani,  375 

Alberti,  Leandro,  10,  3S6 

Albinea,  114,  126,  131,  135,  153 

Aldo,  The  (family),  15,  177 

Aldobrandini,  Cardinal,  234 

Aldrovandi,  The  Marchesc,  270 

Alessandrino  di  Giovanni  d'Arceto,  39 

Alessio,  Master,  187 

Alfonso  of  Spain,  48 

Alfonso  IV'.,  set:  Modena,  Duke  of 

Algarotti,  Francesco,  284,  335,  380 

AUcgorv   of  the   Court  of  Isabella  d'Esle  (by 
Costa),  67 

Allegri,  The  (family),  32,  35,  36 
Anna  Gcria,  185,  186 
Antonia,  32 

Antonio,  called  Correggio  :  supposed  d.ilc 
of  his  birth,  28-30  ;  his  birth-place  and 
family,  30-36  ;  his  education,  37,  38  ;  his 
early  artistic  training,  43,  44  ;  his  sup- 
posed masters,  45-47  ;  influences  of  the 
Ferrarese  school  on  his  art,  48-52  ;  these 
influences  modified  by  that  of  Alantegna, 
53-62  ;  his  sojourn  at  iSIantua,  68-71  ; 
his  relations  with  \'eronica  Gambara  and 
Isabella  d'Este,  83-91  ;  he  is  commis- 
sioned to  paint  the  Madonna  with  St. 
Franeis  for  the  Franciscans  of  Correggio, 
92-94';  transition  period  in  his  art, 
112-115;  he  goes  to  Parma,  151,  152; 
paints  the  frescoes  in  the  Camera  di  San 
Paolo,  158;  marries  Girolama  Merlini, 
185  ;  children  of  their  marriage,  185  ; 
paints  the  frescoes  in  San  Giovanni 
Evangelista,  Parma,  for  the  Benedictines, 
189,  190  ;  returns  to  Correggio,  194,  195, 
226  ;  returns  to  Parma,  and  paints  the 
frescoes  in  the  dome  of  the  cathedral, 
250-255  ;  death  of  his  wife,  274  ;  he  re- 
turns to  his  native  city  and  settles  there, 
307  ;  works  for  Federigo  Gonzaga,  325  ; 
his  death  at  Correggio,  327  ;  supposed 
portraits  of  him,  328-331  ;  his  character, 
333-335  ;  h's  burial-place,  335  ;  monu- 
ments to  his  memory,  340  ;  critical 
analysis  of  his  art,  341-367  ;  his  pupils 
and  imitators,  36S-383 


Allegri,  Caterina,  174,  175 

Clemente,  32 

Cristoforo,  32,  35 

Elisabelta,  32 

Franccsca  Lelizia,  185 

Francesco,  32 

Giacomo,  32 

Giberto,  32 

(;iovanni  Maria,  32 

Jacopo,  33,  35 

Lorenzo,  35,  39,  43,  44,  274 

Lucrezia,  185 

Orsolina,  32 

Pellegrino,  30,  32,  35,  36,  46,  93,  186,  274 

Pomponio,  64,  185,  251,  334,  382,  383 

Quirino,  39,  43 
Allegro,  Pietro  di,  31 
d'Amboise,  Charles,  69 
Anceschi,  see  Bartolotti 
Angcli,  Francesco,  39 
Angelo  of  Siena,  49 

Anguissola,  Abbot  of  Sant'  Antonio,  279 
Anminciatio7i,  The  ("fresco  at  Parma),  241,  247, 

387 
Ansclmi,  Giorgio,  165 

Michelangelo,  189,  216,  218,  250,  321,  371, 
372,  380 
Antclami,  Benedetto,  144 
Antimaco,  3 

Antiopc,  301,  304,  305,  307,  359 
Antonio,  Master,  42 
Antonioli,  Michele,  69,  120,  330 
Anziani,  The  (senators),  21,  94 
Apsley  House,  234 
Araldi,  Alessandro,  148,  154,  167,  250,  254,  369 

Josafat,  147 
Arda  (river),  18 
Aretino,  Pietro,  3,  13 
Aretusi,  Cesare,  213 
Argenta,  Battle  of,  28 
Ariosto,  15,  18,  20,  81,  384,  385 
Armenini,  G.  B.,  169,  391 
Aromani,  Bernardina  degli,  31,  46,  93,  327 

Francesco  degli,  83,  153 

Komanello  degli,  194 
Augustoni,  Sigismondo,  81 
Augustus  III.,  King  of  Poland,  249,  2S9,  296 
d'Azara,  330,  331 
Azzolini,  Cardinal,  314 

Marchese  Pompco,  3t4 


Ba(;arotti,  Aguccio, 

Maflfeo,  146 
Baghirolli,  W.,  311 
Baglione,  Astorre,  3 
Baiardi  (family),  165, 

Cavaliere,  181 


146 


Baini,  Martino,  340 
i>aistrocchi,  216,  2S5 
Baldinucci,  364 
Balducci,  Giovanni,  38 
Bandello,  13,  82 
Bandinello,  Baccio,  69 
Barberini,  Cardinal,  176 

Gallery,  138 
Barigazzi,  15 

Barocci,  Federigo,  113,  270,  335,  38S 
Bartolomeo  di  Giovanni,  39 

called  Bi-ason,  39,  40,  52 

of  Parma,  144 
Bartolotti,  Antonio,  39,  42 
Basseporte,  Madame,  270 
Battista  di  Carlino  di  Bagnolo,  39 
15egarelli,  Antonio,  189,  353,  377 
Beliardi,  Pascasio,  251 
Bellini,  Giovanni,  87,  147 

Jacopo,  48 
Belvedere  Gallery  (Vienna),  313 
Bembo,  81,  82 

Benedetto,  146 
Benedetti,  Maria,  157 
Benson,  Mr.  R.  H.,  103 
Bentivogli,  The  (family),  6,  9,  20,  22,  48,  50,  66, 

67,149. 
Bcntivogiio,  Giovanni,  9,  22,  66 

Palace  at  Bologna,  9,  47 
Bcrceto,  Antonio  da,  187 

Gian  da,  187 
Bergonzi,  Agnese,  154 

Bernardo,  165 

Orazio,  278 
Berlin,  170 

Gallery,  315.  3I7 
Bernardi,  Antonio,  8r 
Bernardino  of  Torchiara,  150,  187,  189 
Berni,  Giovanni,  37 
Bernieri,  Antonio,  196,  330,  382 
Bertioli,  Count  Antonio,  281 
Bianchi,  Tommasino  de',  see  Lancellotti 
})ianchi-Ferrari,  Francesco,  45,  46,  47,  51 
Bianconi,  Carlo,  103,  181 

Dr.,  125 

(priest),  286 
r.il)l,iena,  278 
Ilr^cllini,  Giuseppe,  333 
l;i,>;i,  Quirino,  175,  336 
Jliii/i  of  the  Viri(i>i,  135 
Bisanti,  Trifone,  i  5 
TSissolo,  Francesco,  147 
Pioccaccio,  6 

ISoiardi  (family),  9  ^ 

I'.oiardo,  Matteo,  10,  12,  20,  27,  30,  90 
Uologna,  2,  8,  9,  21,  22,  39,  43,  46-50,  52,  66,  67, 
84,  145,  148,  149,  234,  374 

Gallery,  390 
liolognini.  The  (family),  iio 
PioUrafTio,  Francesco,  146 
11-1,  ,|..,ii.  ,  (',ir..line,  230,  305 
li'      i        I     1.  .     "Imneo,  50 

|:":'''|,  '  ;  ^"';;"\-f5 

Ikiiboni,  tjiacomo,  122 
r.orghcse.  Princess,  315 

(lallery,  316 
Borghini  (writer),  39  r 
Borgia,  C;csar,  3 


Borgia,  Lucrezia,  87 

Borgo,  San  Domino,  144,  146,  310 

Bottari,  175 

Bottoni,  Francesco,  153 

Boucher,  Frangois,  314 

Boulanger,  Jean,  94,  116,  132,  275 

Bourbon,  Connetable  de,  8,  150 

Charles  de  (King  of  Naples),  118 

Philip  de,  see  Parma,  Duke  of 
Bourdon,  Sebastian,  313 
Bramante,  66 

Brandenburg,  Francesca  of,  85 
Braon,  General  di,  286 
Brera,  The  (Milan),  60,  137 
Bresciani,  Antonio,  158 
Bridgewater,  Uuke  of,  315 
British  Museum,  269 
Brunorio,  Gherardo,  31,  33,35 

Paolo,  83,  309 

Pompeo,  185 
Buchanan,  Mr.,  181 
Budapest  Gallery,  176,  178,  iSo 
Buffalmaco,  6 
Bulbarini  (historian),  335 
Bullart,  Isaac,  330 
Buonarroti,  Michelangelo,  44,  63,  87,   139,  151, 

204 
Buralli,  Giovanni,  144 

Burckhardt,  Jakob,  63,  75,  222,  223,  289,  363 
Burton,  Sir  Frederick,  181 
Busseto,  9,  19,  22,  192,  372 
Bussi,  Cardinal,  280 

Cabral,  Count,  177 

Caccia,  Alessandro,  36,  325 

Cadioli,  Giovanni,  72 

Calcagnini  Palace  (Ferrara),  49 

Calcagnini,  Teofilo,  90 

Camera  degli  Sposi  (Mantua),  57,  59,  72,  73,  166 

Camera  di  San  Paolo,  57,  62,  113,  155,  159-168, 

242,  256,  306,  307 
Camilli,  Annibale,  81 
Campagnola  (district),  31-33 
Campana,  Stanislas,  281 
Campidoglio  Gallery  (Rome),  137 
Canacci,  The  Marchese  Taccoli,  126 
Cappello,  81 

Caprara,  Antonietta,  10-12 
Caracena,  The  Marchese  di,  234 
Caravaggio,  39 
Carlini,  15 

Carnesecchi,  Simonc,  388 
Carpi,  2,  9,  14,  15,  19,  48,  126,  337 

Girolamo  da,  173,  270 
Carpio,  The  Marchese  del,  177 
Carracci,  The,  43,   123,   170,  2:3,  223,  270,  271, 

390 
Carracci,  Agostino,  228 

Annibale,  123,  2S2,  2,2,y  357,  39' 

Lodovico,  123 
Casa,  t;iovanni  della,  82 
Casalmaggiore,  375 
Casanova,  Giovanni,  178 
Casapini  (writer),  191 
Caselli,  Cristoforo,  see  TempercUi 
Casio,  16,  82 

Castelvetro,  Lodovico,  17,  175 
Castiglionc,  Baldassarrc,  21,  70,  87 


Catanci,  Federigo,  23 

(Tirolamo,  93 
Catherine  II.  (of  Russia),  178 
Cavaccppi,  178 
Cavalcaselle,  63 
Cavallari,  Alessandro  dci,  39 

Antonio  dei,  39 
Cavazzola,  Fietro,  1S7 
Caviceo,  Jacopo,  18 
Caxes,  Eugenic,  313 
Cellini,  Benvenuto,  3,  139 
Cesena,  54 

Ceva,  C.iacomo  da,  44 
Cliarlcs  I.  (of  England),  303,  305,  3:2 
Charles  II.  (of  Spain),  234 
Charles  IV.  (of  Spain),  178,  181 
Charles  V.  (Emperor),  81,  82,  83,8:;,  150,  192, 

268,310-12,374 
Charles  \-1 1 1,  (of  France\  12 
Chatswiirth,  269 
Chierici.  Oliva,  153 

riiri'.l  ill  tlir  (nii-dcn  of  Ccthsciiiaih\  226,  231 
(  /         '  .  ,'7v  of  His  Mother,  103 

'  !"■  ■ I   -  .^-'den),  313,  314 

(Ml,,,.  i,,.,:,,Miii.ta,  58,  149,250 
Cn-iaco  ot  .Ancona,  49 
Citta  di  Castello,  238 
Clarke,  Sir  Simon,  230 
Clement  MI.,  150,  157,  373 
Coccapani,  see  Reggio,  Bishop  of 

Francesco,  15 
Cochin,  Charles  Nicholas,  346 
Colla,  Uonna  Briseide,  27S 
Colleone,  Bartolomeo,  81 
Colombini,  Cosimo,  126 
Colonna  Gallery,  223,  230 
Michelangelo,  275 
Pirro,  310 
Prospero,  193,  194 
Vittoria,  77,  82 
Colorno  (near  Turin),  280 
Couccpfion,  The  (by  G.  Mazzola-Bedoli),  377 
Contarelli,  Francesco,  34,  336 
Conti,  Girolamo,  29,  336,  339 
Coradusz,  176 
Coreza,  Bartolomeo  de,  40 
Corneille,  Michel,  374 
Coronaiio7i  of  the  Virgin,  TY/c  (fresco),  213-216, 

352 
Corradini,  Corradino,  32 
Correggeschi  (Lords  of  Correggio),  27,  28 
Correggio  (city),  2,  9,   14,  15,  26,  27,  28,  30-34, 
38-40,  42,  47,  48,  52,  65,  69,  70,  1 53^  >  55- 
168,  273,  274,  307,  309,  327,  382 
Agnese  da,  38 

Antonio  da,  see  AUegri,  Antonio 
Borso  da,  28,  89 
Cassandra  da,  81 
Chiara  da,  84,  307,  327 
Costanza  da,  40,  127 
Gian  Francesco  da,  309 
Giberto  da,  13,  27,  28,  32,  40,  44,  76 
Girolamo  da,  82 
Guido  da,  31 
Isotta  da,  81 

IVIanfredo  da,  38,  83,  274 
Nicolo  da,  40,  89,  155 
Corso,  Rinaldo,  43,  44,  64,  78,  81,  82,  90 
Cortemaggiore,  9,  18 


Cossa,  Francesco,  49,  50 

Costa,  Lorenzo,  10,  21,  46,  48,  49,  51,  66,  67,  70, 

71,  98,  100,  148 
Costabili  Gallery  (Ferrara),  99 
Coiignola,  Francesco,  149 
Coypcl,  Charles,  314 
Cremona,  146,  147,  193,  369,  379 
Crespi,  Cavalierc  Benigno,  54,  58,  60,  101 
Crivelli,  The  Uuca,  17S 
Croce,  Brachino,  90 
Cucchiari,  Giovanni,  39 
Cupid  forging  the  Bow,  313 

D.\Mi.\NO,  Master,  187 
Daniie,  311-317,  352,  359 
Dante,  6,  44,  146,  167 
David,  Lodovico  Antonio,  232 
Davolio.  Vinccnzo,  127,  128 


Tin-,  191,  22 


344 


Dispute  if  the  Sacnvnent,  1 

Dodi,  Stefano,  251 

Dolce,  Lodovico,  351,  352,  387 

Dolci,  82 

Dolcibelli.  Benedetto,  15,  19 

Doman,  see  Allegri,  Pellegrino 

Donesmondi,  7 1 

Doni,  Anton  Francesco,  388 

Doria-Pamfili  Gallery  (Rome),  324 

Dossi,  The  (family),  43 

Dosso,  48,  66,  68,  69,  70,  120,  328,  330 
Dresden,  54,  55,  58,  95,  269,  276,  279 

Gallery,  275,  289,  295,  389 
Dubois,  Cardinal,  296 
Duro,  Rinaldo,  39 
Dutillot,  Guillaume,  280 

Eece  Homo,  226,  227,  230,  305 
Education  of  Cupid,  The,  301,  304-307 
Emilia,  The,  8,  9,  15,  26,  30,  42,  47 
Enrico  of  Lodi,  39 
Enza,  The  (river),  18 
Enzola,  Guidolino  da,  250 
d'Epinailles,  Comte,  314 
Erasmus,  20 
Erba,  Da,  3S0 

lorio  da,  167,  253 
Ercole  III.,  sec  Modena,  Duke  of 
Erri,  The  (family),  43.  50 
d'Este,  Francesco,  296 

Isabella,  21,  86-91,  165,  236,  274,  322 
Lionello,  48 
Cardinal  Luigi,  175 
Rinaldo,  134 
Sigismondo,  1 1 
Estense  Gallery  (Modena),  182 
Estensi,  The  (family),  6,  8,  11,  12,  20,  27,  28,  39, 

48,  149,  294,  295 
Esterhazy  Collection,  178 
E\erardo  of  Parma,  145 

F.\BRIC0  (commune),  36 
Fabrizi,  Signor  Paolo,  170 

Count  V'incenzo,  337 
Fanano,  1 1 
Farncse,  .Alessandro,  382 

Collection,  170 


Farnese,  Francesco,  278 

Margherita  (Sister  Maura),  117,  118 

Ottavio,  135 

Paul,  Ji-t'  Paul  III. 

Ranuccio,  1 17 
Farosi,  Tommaso,  94 
Fasolo,  Antonio,  146 
Fassi,  Melchiorre,  105,  106 
Feo,  Giacomo,  7 
Ferdinand  VII.  (of  Naples),  234 
Ferrara,  2,  6,  8,  20,  28,  39,  43,  48,  50,  52,  55,  84, 
148,  233 

Bartolomeo  de,  see  Bartolomeo 

Duke  of,  135 
Ferrari,  Luca,  94 
Ferrarini,  Agostino,  340 
Fieravante,  21 
Fiorenzuola  d'Arda,  245 
Flanders,  39,  40,  48 
Florence,  4,  6,  8,  28,  52,  332 
Fois,  Tommaso,  193,  121 
Foix,  Gaston  de,  8,  121 
Fontanellato,  Castle  of,  375 
Fontanelli,  The  (family),  155 
Forli,  Melozzo  da,  see  Melozzo 
Fornori,  Simone,  52 
Fornovo,  Battle  of,  8 
Fosdondo,  36 

Francesca  of  Brandenburg,  41 
Francesco  III.,  see  Modena,  Duke  of 
Francia,  Francesco,    10,  20,  43,  44,  46,  47,  49, 

58,  66,  98,  10.8,  145,  147-149,  167 
Francis  1.  (of  France),  150,  192 
Frankfort-on-the-Main,  119 
Frederick  the  Great,  314 
Frigeri,  Franceso,  146 
Frizzoni,  Dr.  Gustavo,  99,  137,  181,  231,  235 


G.^IB.-VZZI,  Ippolita,  372 
Galeotto,  13 
Galossi,  Galosso,  50 
Gambara,  Gian  Francesco,  76 

Lattanzio,  328,  329 

Uberto,  84 

Veronica,  41,  69,  76-86,  236,  274,  299,  307, 
308,  310 
Gandino  del  Grano,  Giorgio,  251,  369,  378 
Ganymede  (fresco  in  the  Modena  Gallery),  128- 

130 
Ganymede  (Vienna  Gallery),  313,  319-321 
Garimberti  The  (family),  i  54 

Galeazzo,  251 
Gatti,  Bernardino  (//  Soiaiv),  266,  379 
Gautier,  Th^ophile,  171 
Geneva,  328 
Ghislieri,  Bonaparte,  67 
Giacomo  Antonio  of  Reggio,  146 
Gian  Galeazzo  (Visconti),  81 
Giarola,  Giovanni,  382 
(Horgione,  48,  363-365 
(Hotto,  360 

Ciiovanni  Battista  of  Lodi,  39 
Giovanni  delle  Bande  Nere,  8 

of  Flanders,  40 

Fra,  see  Buralli 

Francesco  of  Torchiara,  150 

of  Pavia,  146 

di  I'ietro,  39,  69 


Giovanni  di  Pietro  di  Giovanni,  39 

of  Rubiera,  29 
Giraldi,  Lilio,  14,  82 
Godoy,  Don  Emmanuele,  iSi,  305 
Gonzaga,  Alessandro  (of  Novellara),  127,  195 

Camilla,  16 

Collection,  125 

Costanza,  77 

Eleanor,  23 

Federigo  (Marquis  of  Mantua),  70 

Federigo  (Lord  of  Bozzolo),  193 

II.  (Duke  of  Mantua),  311,  325,  3S1,  386 

Ferrante,  17 

Filippo,  124 

Francesco  (of  Novellara),  16 

Francesco  (Lord  of  Mantua),  55,  71 

Gian  Pietro  (of  Novellara),  40 

Isabella,  see  d'Este,  Isabella 

Luigi,  81 

Taddea,  12 

Vincenzo  (Duke  of  Modena),  1 17 

Vincenzo  II.  (Duke  of  Mantua),  304 
Gonzaghi,  The  (family),  6,  9,  16,  27,  39,  40,  61 

67,  68,  70,  75,  86,  149 
Gonzales  de  Villena,  310 
Gonzate,  Damiano  da,  250 

Filippo  da,  250 
Gotti,  Nicolo  dei,  254 
Grandi,  Ercole,  49 
Grapaldo,  Francesco  Maria,  147 
Grassi,  Gian  Battista,  332 
Grillenzoni,  Francesco,  119,  174 

Giovanni,  119,  175,  176 
Grimani  (of  Venice),  122 
Gritti,  The  (family),  124 
Gualdo,  Girolamo,  29 
Guarino  (poet),  48 
Guastalla,  9,  13,  15,  16,  27 
Guercino,  224,  296,  298,  303 
Guglielmo  of  Tolosa,  187 
Guicciardini,  Francesco,  150,  193 
Guidiccioni,  Monsignor,  157 
Guidotto,  Giovanni,  131,  236 
Gustavus,  Prince  of  Sweden,  314 
Guzman,  Don  Ramirez  de,  234 

H.^iMPTON  Court,  61,  114,  118,  165,  239 

Hercolani  (family),  234 

Hermitage,  The  (St.  Petersburg),  176,  178 

Hercdias,  85,  120,  122 

Hope,  Henry,  315 


/", 


1-317 


J.VHACH,  304,  322 

Collection,  322,  324 
Jansen  (writer),  149 
Jodo,  Jacopo  di,  38 
Julius  II.,  14,  22,  66,  67,  150,  157 
Jupiter,  The  Loves  (i/ (cartoons),  325,  386 

KnK\li\Hll.I.KR,  Count,  313 

L.\MO,  Pietro,  234,  38S 
Lancellotti  (chronicler),  45,  29; 
Landi,  Ortensio,  64,  65,  341,  387 
Landini,  Pietro,  94 
Lanfranco,  Giovanni,  240 
Laniere,  Nicholas,  303,  304 


405 


Lanzi,  L.,  71,  328-330,  364,  365 

Latino,  Master,  39,  40 

Lapcyrifere  Collection,  181 

Lautrec,  193 

Leda,  311,  313,  314,  317 

Lelmi,  Snnone,  238 

Leo  X.,  150,  157,  192 

Leonardelli  Jesuit  writer),  350 

Leonardo  da  Vinci,  48,  65,  72,  87,  148    149, 

344,  355-  357,  363,  364 
Leoni,  (jian  Hattista,  391 

Leone,  312 

Ponipeo,  233,  312 
Lepidus,  Marcus  Einilius,  143 
Lionbruno,  Lorenzo,  66,  70,  7 1 
Lodovico  il  Moro,  28 
Lomazzo,  232,  233,  311,  312,  364,  391 
Lombardi,  Gian  Battista,  38,  80,  119 
Lombardy,  51 

Londonderry,  Marquis  of,,  230,  305 
Lon^hi,  The  (family),  43 
I.os.lM,  Th.    M„„ly),43 
!....,  I,,.  1,1,  ,i,„i.  147,  187 

i.t.ll..,     I    ,,M    l,,.i,     107,    120,    364,    365 

Lorenzo  ul  .Milan  .engineer),  146 
Louis  XII.  (of  trance),  15 

XIV.  (of  France),  176,  229,  304,  323 
Louvre,  The,  55,  220,  269,  304,  322 
Lucca,  372 

Luchino,  Bernardino  di,  39,  69 
Ludovico  of  Parma,  146 
Ludovisi,  Cardinal,  234 
Lusenti,  Baldassarre,  40 

M.\CHI.\VELLI,  3,  150 

Madonna,  The  Allnnca,  12S,  131-13S,  30; 
Tin-  l!ol,xnim\  no 
/■//,■  Cain/><in\  1 10 
I'/ie  Casidnidi^^i^iore,  119 
dclla  Ccsta,  the,  176,  179- 181 
del  Lattc,  The,  176-179 
della  Scala,  The,  241,  242,  3S7 
della  StodeHa,  The,  115,  284-289,  362 
with  St.  I'rancis,  The,  92-99,  106,  113,  . 
wtth  St.  Gen/ye,  The,  295-300,  346,  362, 
TC'/th  St.  James  and  St.  Joseph,  1 19,  305 
■7.'////  St.  Jerome,  The,  173,277-284,346, 
loith  St.  Selkistian,  The,  275-277 
■loith  the  Ral'tut,  The,  see  Zint^anila  La 
with  the  two  Children,  77;f  (Frankfort 

the-Main),  ng 
with  the  two  Children,   The   (The    V\: 
Madrid),  1 14,  305 

Madonnina,  Francesco,  295 

Madrid,  114,  118,  305,  313 

Madrazo,  Jose,  235 

Mae:do'.„  //;  //■,    Pesert,  The,  274 
■       .236-238 

M.n:„  1!,.       iM.nly),  52 

M,il.i,:ii     1,   \lr--,indro,  131 

Malaspiua,  Luiyi,  108 

Malatesta,  Sigismondo,  7 

Malatesti,  The  (family),  6 

Malazappi,  Frate  Giovanni,  391 

Males  so,  II,  244 

Malvasia,  C.  C,  47,  213 

Mandrio,  36 

Mandriolo,  36 

Mangoni,  Antonio,  39 


Mantegna,  Andrea,  3,  21,  48,  52-55,  57-59,  61, 

62,  66-69,  7',  72,  98,  loi,  102,  166 
Mantua,  2,  6,  8,  23,  48,  54,  55,  57,  59,  62,  66-72, 
87,  122,  148 
Duke  of  {see  also   Cionzag.i),  36,   154,   192, 

228,305,381,386 
Gallery,  301 


Marioiti,  Dr.  Giovanni,  206 

Marrioi^e  of  St.  Catherine,  The,  29,    104, 

176 
Marriage  of  the  Virgin,  'The  {hy  Kaphaen, 
Martini,  153,  165 
M.irtyrdoiii  ofSt.Plaeidiis,  The,  191,219  22: 


.\l.,,,,iiri.  (  .M.linal,  304,  323 
Al,i//.i,  An.L^rlo,  229 

Abate  .Andrea,  169,  191,  280 
Mazzola,  Francesco,  see  Parmigianino 
Michele,  188,  373 
Pietro  Ilario,  188,  373 
Mazzola-Bedoli,   (lirolamo,    189,  251,  255, 

331,369 
Mazzoli,  The  (family),  43,  147,  369 
Mazzucchi,  Nicolo,  194 
Medici,  The,  6 

Cardinal,  de',  310 
Constantino,  72 
Cosimo,  Cardinal  de',  182 
Giovanni  de',  7 
Giovanni,  72 
Melozzo  da  Forli,  62,  63 
Mengs,   Raphael,   54,  62,63,  '70,  '/S,  '^i, 
186,  216,   228,  229,  232,  272,  276,  289, 
295,  306,  323,  324,  329,  35' 
Merlini,  Bartolomeo,  185 
Giovanni,  185 
Girolama,  36,  184,  274 
Merlo,  Ippolito,  81 
Metternich,  Prince,  392 
Meyer,  Julius,   26,   50,   54,   57,    58,69,  137. 
168,   170,   171,   175,    178,    179,    181,    1S2, 
233,  234,  241,  255,   269,  2S5,   288,  312, 
320,  321,  324,  328,  330,  331,  392 
Migliorotti,  Atalante,  go 
Mignaty,  Madame  .^Ibani,  175,  2S5 
Milan,  6,  8,   18,  39,  54,  58,  66,  72,  i  10,  137. 
150,  151,  281,  312 
Duke  of,  28 

(Municipal  Museum),  107 
(Academy  of  Fine  .Arts),  181 
.Milanesi  (art-writer),  149 
Mirandola,  2,  13,  14,  44,  296 

Pico  della,  see  Pico 
Mitelli,  .A.gostino,  275 

Modena,  2,  12,  13,  42,  43,  45,  46,  48,  50, 
173,  174,  182,  238,  276,  278,  389,  295,  297, 
309-  33^ 


4o6 


Modena,  Duke  of  (Alfonso  I\'.\  275 

(Ercole  III.),  336 

(Francesco  I.),  132,  134.  '3''%  295,  296 

(Francesco  III.),  275 

(Rinaldo),  124 

Academy  of,  336 
Moile,  Damiano  da,  137 
Molza  (writer),  16,  81,  82 

Annibale  (governor  of  Correggio),  95 
Mond,  Mr.  L.,  215 
Monferrato,  Marchese  di,  330 
Moni,  Domenico,  295 
Montechiarugolo,  9,  18 
Montecorvino,  Giovanni  da,  30 
Montefeltro,  6 

Antonio  da,  1 5 
Montesino,  Gian  Ludovico,  94 
Montini,  The  (family),  155 
Montino,  Bartolomeo,  155 

Scipione,  154,  167,  254,  287,  325 
Morelli,  Giovanni,  46,  50,  99,  100,  loi    103 

224,231,235,236,365 
Munari  Chapel,  116 

Pellegrino,  51 
Mmiarini  Count,  337 
Miindler,  Otto,  137,  177,  324 
Murat,  230,  305 
Muratori,  232 

Nagi.er,  1 78 
Naples,  1 18,  305 

(National  Museum),  116,  170 
Napoleon  I.,  281,  315 
National  Gallery  (London),  181,  230 
Nativity,  The,  see  Nottc,  La 
Nieuwenhuys,  C.  J.,  181 
Noli  me  tangere,  226,  234,  235,  3S8 
Notte,  La,  loi,  195,  289-295,  346 
Novara,  20 

Novellara,  2,  9,  12,  15,  16,  40,  42,  123,  124. 
Nude  Figure  of  tJic  Saviour,  sec   I'nian. 

Crista 
Nys,  Daniele,  304 

OdesCALCHI,  Don  Livio,  314 
Orange,  Prince  of,  8 
Orleans,  Charlotte  of,  296 

Louis  of,  314,  315 

Gallery,  234 
Orsi,  Lelio,  130,  382 
Orsini,  Muzio,  177 
Ottonelli,  Domenico,  176,  319 

Pacediano,  Nicola,  18 

Paganino,  Antonio,  189,  213 

Palatine  Library  (Parma),  215,  239 

Palazzo  dei  Diam.inii    Fen. 11,1',  52 
dei  Signori     1  ,Hi>:_^h.  .  ;: 
del  Giardino    I'.n  nu  .  :.\  \.  329 
della  PilotUi    rann.i,,  J43,  246 
del  Te  (Mantua),  130,  352 

Pallavicini,  The  (family),  9 

Pallavicino,  Cristoforo,  192 
fJian  Ludovico,  18,  19 
Veronica,  16 

Palma  \'ccchio,  107 

Palmaroli,  Pictro,  277 

Panriroli,  Alberto,  300,  327 

Panclli.  12; 


Paris,  2S0,  315 

Alessandro,  34 
Gherardino,  34 
Parma,  2,  8,  9,  22,   27,   36,  42-44,  51,  60-62,  70, 
84,  143-150,   152-157,  165,   166,   168,268, 
271,  281,  307,  327,  330,  335,  343,  345,  369, 
372,  376,  379 
(Accademia  di  belle  Arti),  169,  280 

Bishop  of,  246 

Cathedral,  226,  241,  248-272,  319,  328 

Duke  of,  280 

Gallery,  277,  284,  331,  378,  380 
(Palazzo  Communale),  338 
(Piazza  Grande),  340 

Siege  of,  274 
Parmigianino  (Francesco  Mazzola),  23,  189,  250 

313,  319,  320,  321,  331,  358,  369,  373-377 
Parnassus  (by  Raphael),  87 
Pasquicr  (collector),  314 
Passarotti,  Pjartolomeo,  270,  295,  390 
Paul  III.,  150 
Pavia,  57,  58,  146,  379 

(Communal  Museum),  107 
Peace,  Prince  of  the,  see  Godoy 
Pellegrini,  Bianca,  7,  22 
Perez  Collection,  312 
Periberti,  Gottifredo,  176 
Perugia,  6 

University  of,  3 
Perugino,  98 
Peruzzi,  Baldassare,  15 
Pesne,  Antoine,  314 
Petrarch,  6,  27,  82 
Philip  II.  fof  Spain),  312 

IV.  (of  Spain),  234 
Pia,  Alda,  69 

Piacenza,  18,  37,  84,  143,  146,  379 
Piacenza,  Giovanna,  151-155,  157 
Piazza,  Galeazzo,  254 
Piazzoli,  Bernardina,  see  Aromani 
Pico  family  (della  Mirandola),  9 

Antonio,  13 

Gian  Francesco,  14 

Gian  Tommaso,  14 

(;io\anni,  13,  14,  30,  163 

Giulia,  13 

Violante,  13 
Piemontesio,  Giacomo,  39 
Piero  della  Francesca,  48 
Pinacci,  Giuseppe,  349 
Pinturicchio,  148 
Pio  family,  9,  14 

Alberto,  14,  15 

Ercole,  189,  213 

Gian  Marsiglio,  15 

Marco,  14,  15,  30 
Pisa,  5 

(Campo  Santo),  5 
Pisanello,  48 
Pisano,  Nicola,  144 
Pitti  Gallery  (Florence),  303 
Pomponaccio,  20 
Ponz, 'Antonio,  232 
Ponzio,  Paolo  Gottardo,  312 
Po,  Teresa  del,  177 
Pordenone,  19 

Porto,  Count  Alessandro,  16 
Portrait  of  a  Physician,  i  19 


Pozzo,  Pietro  dal,  3S3 

Prado,  The  (Madrid),  165,  234 

Prague,  313 

Prati,  The  (family),  165,  228,  229 

Marchese,  230 
Pratoneri,  Alberto,  293,  294 
Proii-ssion  to  Calvary,  The,  380 
Prudhon,  Pierre,  314 
Pungileoni,   Luigi,  26,  31,  37,  44,  45,  69,  85,  124, 

155.  174,  175,  185,  191,  i'14,  ::-9,  ^30,  269,  278, 

285,  295,  328,  336 
Pusterla,  Lucrezia,  307 


Raxc.oni  family,  27 

Claudia,  82"'^"' 

Claudio,  13,  233 

Fulvio,  233,  294 

Ginevra,  81 
Rails,  Pietro,  121 
Raphael,  3,  10,  20,  26,  48,  84,  85,  14S,  150, 

344,  356 
Ratti,  Carlo  Giuseppe,   54,   158,   174,    186,. 

328,  329,  353 
Ravenna,  43 

Reggie,  2,  II,   12,   31,  40,  48,   51.    52,  146, 
234,  238,  293,  300 

Bishop  of,  132,  134 

Cesare  da,  42,  52,  86,  149,  187,  1S8 
Rembrandt,  303 
Reni,  Guido,  289,  298,  357 
Renier,  R.,  86 

Collection,  124 
Repose  in  Ei^vpt,    llie,  11 3- 11 5,   128,   137, 

165,  178 
Resta,  Sebastiano,  30,  62,  63,  66,  85,   177,  : 

.329,  335.  340,  355 
Riario,  Girolamo,  7 
Ricci,  Sebastiano,  170 
Ricciarda,  Maria,  124 
Richardson,  Jonathan,  365 
Rimini,  6,  143 

Lattanzio  da,  147 
Riolunato,  1 1 
Rizzoli,  Giovanni,  129 
Roberti,  Ercole,  49,  50,  52 
Roccabianca,  7,  146,  309 
Romano,  Giulio,  21,  84,  130,  31 1,  352 
Rome,  6,  8,  13,  150,  170,  374 

(Academy  of  St.  Luke),  336 
Rondani,  Francesco   Maria,   189,   192,  216,  . 

250,  369,  370 
Rondanini,  The  Marchese,  216 
Rosa,  Delia,  see  Montino 

Marchese  della,  229,  230,  27S 
Rosaspina,  Francesco,  280 
Roseto,  Bartolomeo,  146 
Rossano,  Princess,  177 
Rossi,  The  (family),  9,  27 

Collection,  331 

Pier  Maria,  7,  21,  146 
Rotterdam,  20 
Rousseau  (painter),  324 
Rovere,  Francesco  Maria  della,  23 
Rovazzi,  Giacomo,  146 
Rudolph  II.  (Emperor),  313 
Ruscelli,  82 
Ruta  (writer),  213,  214 


S\Li\iiiM    Loienzo,  270  jS9 

Suchclti    1  1  inco,  6 

S  iLchi    rommiso    146 

\aiiit  h  i> Ihi  I  II  wiiK  <)ftiil)tych\  123 

Cath  I  , 

Cecili  I     I  I      I       4    167 

John  I  I  uipt>ch),  123 

John  ti     I      III         I    tusLo>,  218 

M  nthi  ')■,    104    10,    i.i 
Sunt  Mn\    Mou  ui   .Si 
S  nntc  (  cncMcxc    -Xbbt  of  ji4 
SihmlKnt    I-n   5    144  249 
SdMiii  Cisi(Floience),  228 
S  m  1  1  i^io  j6 
Stn  (  101^10,  tiidinaldi,  177 

Martino,  30,  36,  310 
Rector  of,  330 

Paolo,  Convent  of  (Parma),  1 5 1  - 1 68 

Prospero,  36 

Secondo,  Jacopo  da,  87 
San  Giovanni  Evangelista,  Church  of  (I'arma), 
42,  150-152,  162,  166,   168,   186-219,  256,  259, 
264,  266,  269,  344,  357,  370 
Sandrart,  174,  233,  351 
Sannazaro,  82 
Santa  Maria  della  Steccata,  Church  of  (Parma), 

'50,274,374,375 
Santa   Maria    della    Vittoria    (by    Mantegna), 

100 
Santi,  Sigismondo,  15 
Sanvitale,  375 

Beatrice,  81 

Cardinal,  278 

Nicolo  Quirico,  381 
Sanvitali,  The  (family),  27 
Sardinia,  King  of,  330 
Sarto,  Andrea  del,  26,  47,  69,  352 
Savonarola,  14 
Scaligeri,  The  (family),  27 
Scaltriti,  Ippolita,  2,0 
Scandiano,  2,  9,  10,  11 
Scannelli,  Francesco,  53,  224,  22S,  291,  298,  y^}„ 

Schall,  Dr.  Theodor,  170 
Schifanoia  Palace  (Ferrara),  49,  50 
Schlcsinger,  Jakob,  314 
Scotti,  Casa  (Milan),  37S 
.Sebastiano  di  (iiovanni  di  Pietro,  39 
Scgni,  Fabio,  3S7 
Sclli,  Nicola,  92 
Sforza,  Alessandro,  386 

Bona,  76 

Caterina,  7 

Caterina  Nobili,  175 

(jinevra,  9 
Sforzi,  The  (family),  6,  21 
Siena,  15,  16,  49,  372      - 
Sigmaringen,  58,  60,  i  io 
Signoretti,  Francesco  Maria,  233 
Sinigaglia,  3 

Siro,  Don  (of  Austria),  122,  125 
SIxUis  1\".,  28 
Snicnddi,  Smcraldo,  15S 
Sodoma,  149 
Sogari,  Ranuccio,  34 
Soiaro,  II,  see  Gatti,  B. 
Soliera,  1 10 

Spaccini,  (^ian  Battista,  43,  276 
Spain,  312 


Stockholm,  313 

Library,  314 
Strozzi,  Costanza,  16 
Symonds,  John  Addington,  357 

Tacconi,  Francesco,  146,  147 
Tasso,  Bernardo,  13,  21,  82 
Tassoni,  Alessandro,  391 
Tebaldeo,  Antonio,  20 
Tedeschi,  Caetano,  28 1 
TempereUi,   Cristoforo   Caselh,    147, 

250,  369 
Tessin,  Count,  314 
Thode,  Dr.  H.,  119 
Tiarini,  Alessandro,  1 13 
Tieck,  Ludwig,  272 
Tiepolo,  Gianbattista,  272 
Tinti,  Giovanni  B.,  244 
Tintoretto,  330 

Tiraboschi,  Girolamo,   26,  43,  45,  85,  120, 
122,  158,  169,  174,  191,  216,  229,  266,  2S5, 
335,  336,  340 
Titian,  47,  55,  151,  268 
Tognino,  sec  Bartolotti 
Torchiara,  7,  21,  146,  150,  370 
Torelli,  The  (family),  16,  18 

AchiUe,  16 

Barbara,  18 

Caterina,  40,  127 

Francesco,  1 54 

Ludovica,  16 
Torlonia,  Prince,  177 
Torre,  Cristoforo  della,  244 
Torrentino,  Lorenzo,  388 
Torri,  Flaminio,  276 
Tortona,  Bishop  of,  340 
Toschi,  Paolo,  203,  381 
Touraine,  330 
Tours  Gallery,  330 
Traballesi,  Giuliano,  353 
Trasinaro,  1 1 

Trent,  Council  of,  155,  158 
Treviso,  Vincenzo,   147 
Trissino  (writer),  82 
Trombetta,  Giberto,  39 
Tura,  Agnolo  di,  6 

Cosm^,  49,  50 
Turin,  330 
Tuscany,  28,  48,  332 

Ubicino,  Giberto  di,  39 

Uffizi,  55,  57,  58,  137,  165,  170,  182,  270,  3c 

Ugoleto,  Taddeo,  165 

Umanita  di  Crista  (centre  of  triptych),  123 

Umbria,  48 

Urbani,  Nicolo,  246 

Urbino,  6,  15 

Duke  of,  23 
Urlichs,  L.,  312 


\'alla,  Giorgio,  1 5 

Valle,  Ferdinando  de,  310 

\"anloo,  Carle,  314 

Vanni,  Francesco,  113 

Varchi,  82 

Vasari,  29,  44,  45,  46,  49,  51,  64,  65, 
173,  175,  233>  234,  243,  269,  282,284, 
3251  328,  329,  33°)  33'>  332,  333j  334, 
349,  351,  353,  357,  362,  364,  366,  374, 

\'asto,  The  Marchese  del,  309,  310,  38^^ 
67,    iSg,      Vedriani,  Lodovico,  45 

Vela,  Vincenzo,  340 

Venice,  6,  8,  51,  52,  147,  149,  151 

V'enturi,  Adolfo,  48,  55,  175,  238,  269 

Viadana,  373 

Viardot,  L.,  230 

Vice,  an  allegory,  322 

Vicenza,  16 

Vienna,  269,  305,  313 

Vigarini  family,  30 

\'igna  delta  Rcgina  ('Turin),  330 


Infant  Christ,  1 76,  1 8: 


Ci.in  Gak'a//o,  81 

Piero,  233 
\'itelli,  Vitello,  193 
\'ivarini,  Alvise,  147 
\'olta,  Leopnldo,  71 

Waacen,  Dr.,  178,  231 
Weimar  Museum,  245,  320,  321 
Wellington,  Duke  of,  234 
Werff,  Adrien  van  der,  237,  238 
Weyden,  Roger  van  der,  48 
Wiesbaden,  131 
Windsor  (Royal  Library),"269, 
Winckelmann,  178,  314 

Young  Faun,  The,  106 
Yriarte,  Charles,  72,  74 

Zaxetti,  350 
Zanichelli,  Carlo,  270 
Zanotti,  Antonio  Maria,  335 
Zappata,  Maurizio,  158,  186 

Don  Pietro,  309 
Zarotti,  Giovanni,  147,  250 
Zeno,  .Apostolo,  313 
Zinella,  Conto  della,  39 
Zingarella,  La,  114-117,  137,  359 
Zuccardi,  Antonio,  93 

Chronicle,  335 

Lucio,  85 

Quirino,  92 
Zucchi,  Gian  Francesco,  286 

Marc  Antonio,  188,  191 


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